Balance
by GhostMajor
Summary: Being left for dead in the North Pole, Zuko is given a second chance by the Spirits. But as punishment for chasing the Avatar, the prince is transformed into an ancient beast of his nation. Only when the world is in balance again can he return to normal.
1. Prologue

A/N: So this is my first real attempt at a fanfic. Constructive criticism is welcome (just be gentle).

Disclaimer: **I own nothing! Everything Avatar belongs to Bryke, Nickelodeon, and other people.**

Balance

Prologue

"Wait," the Avatar said as he looked back to the fallen prince lying face down in the snow. "We can't just leave him here, he'll die."

"Sure we can," Sokka replied. "If he dies now, then that's one less Fire Nation scum we have to deal with."

Katara glared at her brother as she pushed him aside. "What Sokka means is, Aang, that if Zuko is gone, then that's one less worry we have to deal with in ending this war."

"Either way, it'll be one less thorn in our side, which I've had plenty of, thanks."

Aang never took his eyes off of the unconscious Zuko. "...I don't know...it doesn't feel right, just leaving him here to die like that."

Sokka scrambled forward towards him, tripping ungracefully over the front of Appa's saddle on the way. He managed to upright himself and put a hand on the Avatar's shoulder, then told him in a more serious tone, "Look Aang, I know it seems wrong, but this is a war. And during wars, you can't save everyone, it's just not possible. _Especially_ when the person you're trying to save is the enemy!"

Aang felt a warm hand on his other shoulder, and turned to see the piercing blue gaze of Katara. Though he remained silent, he pleaded with his eyes for her to understand, but when she spoke, he realized it was to no avail. "Aang," she started quietly. "I don't like this any more than you do, but...but I think Sokka is right," Katara ignored her brother as he puffed out his chest and nodded proudly at himself. "I just don't know if I can handle something like this again. I mean, he kidnapped you, Aang! While you weren't even in your body! Do you know how scary that was for me?" Tears were streaming down her face by this point. "I thought...I thought I'd lost you," she finished in almost a whisper.

Giving Katara's hand a gentle squeeze, Aang nodded, finally giving in. When it came to Katara, he just couldn't help but cave. "Alright," he said. "We'll go." His gaze trailed back to the limp body still lying there, the slow rise and fall of his back the only sign he was still alive. _Though not for long_, Aang thought somberly.

Once the Water Tribe siblings were safely back in the saddle, the Avatar patted his Spirit Animal's mighty head. "You ready, buddy?" Appa replied with a sad groan. "I know, boy. I don't like this either." Taking one last look into the snow, Aang flipped the reins, and with a "yip yip", they were off to defend the North Pole once again.

~~~ oOo ~~~

As Zuko began to awake, the first thing he noticed was he was no longer cold. To the contrary, it was quite hot. Though where he was, he didn't know, as he still couldn't open his eyes just yet. As the minutes past by, and strength began to return to him, he cracked an eye open to look around.

The sight the former Fire Prince saw made him forget about any discomforts he was having. He quickly rose to his feet, ignoring the wave of dizziness this caused, and took in his surroundings. No longer was he in the North Pole; quite the opposite. He was standing on an island...in the middle of an active volcano. His right eye widened as he watched the lava flow all around him. "What's going on?" he whispered to no one in particular.

A quick movement to his left told Zuko he wasn't the only one on this little island. He spun with the reflexes of a trained soldier, fists ready in a firebending stance. The man who stood before him was not at all effected by this, however. He stood tall, and carried himself with pride. His robes were a deep red, trimmed in neat gold threading. His hair was long and gray, though he did not wear the typical Fire Nation top knot. His eyes were like a blazing inferno as they glared down at the boy in front of them.

Zuko knew immediately who this man was. Falling onto his hands and knees, face touching the floor, he said, "My Lord Agni".

"Arise, Prince Zuko," Agni told him in a stern voice.

Obeying the Sun Spirit's orders, Zuko stood and asked, "What's going on, my lord? Where am I? What happened to the Avat-"

"Silence!" The lava around the island shot up several feet in the air, quickly ending the prince's many questions. Seeing he had made his point, Agni continued. "I shall answer your second question first. You are in the Realm of the Sun, where I dwell. As for what is happening...you died."

It felt as if Agni had just punched Zuko in the stomach. He stared at the spirit, wide eyed and gasping for breath, before he finally managed to ask, "h-how?"

"Hypothermia, most likely," Agni replied simply. "You became so cold, your inner fire went out. Your life force going along with it."

"Wait, if that's what...what...killed me, then what about the Avatar?" Zuko asked the spirit, scanning the volcano around him, before returning his gaze back to Agni. "If I didn't survive, then he wouldn't either, right?" He knew how desperate he sounded but, well, he was desperate at this point. Death was a hard enough concept to wrap your head around without it being _your_ death you're trying to register.

"That would have been the case," a pause, "had it not been for the Avatar's companions. You remember them coming, do you not?"

"Y-yes," Zuko replied weakly. "I got ready to fight them and...that Water Tribe peasant knocked me out with a bunch of snow..." He looked up at the great spirit, his eyes betraying the emotions raging inside him as realization struck him like a komodo-rhino running at full speed. "They left me to die..." he said, barely louder than a whisper.

Agni's only response was a quick nod.

At that conformation, Zuko's pent up anger finally exploded. "Why would they do that!? How can they just knock a guy unconscious, in a blizzard, I might add, then leave him to die?! I never liked any of them, but I thought they at least had _some_ honor! Maybe I should have just killed them all when I had the cha-" Zuko's rant was cut short by Agni's booming voice.

"You _dare _speak of honor when you have spent the last six months attempting to capture the world's last and only hope for peace?"

"I'm only trying to fulfill my destiny!" the boy defended.

"Fool!" the great spirit shouted, causing the lava to once again shoot into the air, and the prince to visibly flinch at the reprimand. "What makes you think that _this_ is your destiny? Your father's desire? Your forefather's? Fools they were, as you and your father still are!"

"My father is no fool!" cried Zuko. "He only wishes to fulfill the vision Great-grandfather Sozin had and share the greatness of the Fire Nation with the rest of the world. We all know they need it," he mumbled.

Agni sighed. "It still confounds me how my own people can think they are so superior. Are you any greater than those so called, 'Water Tribe peasants' simply because you are of Fire, and they of Water?"

Zuko opened his mouth to respond, but was quickly cut off by Agni.

"Far from it, as far as I am concerned. You have seen the world; what this war has done, yet you still cling to your stubborn ways and blindly follow a man who has no honor to begin with! While they see what it has done, and reach out to those in need. Now tell me, who do you think pleases me more in these situations?"

Agni looked down his sharp nose at the prince, who couldn't seem to look the spirit in the eyes any longer. "...I," Zuko started, but wasn't able to say anything more.

"This world cannot live without balance," Agni stated, more gently this time. "Each element needs the other in order to survive. None is greater than the other, nor is any weaker. And in the same way, the nations need each other. The Fire Nation, the Earth Kingdom, the Water Tribes, and even the Air Nomads _need_ each other. Though they may be very different from one another, balance is needed in order to bring peace to the world again."

Finally able to find his voice, Zuko shouted, "I don't care about balance! The war can go on forever, for all I care. I just want to go home! I want my father to love me again," he finished quietly, very aware of how selfish he sounded.

"You just don't get it, do you?!" Agni boomed, quickly crossing the space between them and poking a hot finger into the prince's chest, causing him to yelp as his flesh burned. "If there is no balance, the world will forever be in chaos! Have you learned nothing from the Fire Sages? How can one as foolish as you call yourself a son of Agni?"

Once again not able to look the Sun Spirit in the eyes, Zuko looked at his feet, feeling smaller by the minute.

"As for your father," Agni continued. "That man is a disgrace. I am ashamed to have someone as vial and cruel as Ozai representing my glory. But somehow you crave this man's attention, willing to put your own life on the line for his power hunger. Yet another sign of how foolish you are. You have a father who's loved you all along, though he's not the one you're thinking of. One full of honor and great wisdom, yet you treat him like dirt," he spat.

Zuko was about to retort, but was cut off by the burning finger poking harder into his chest.

"Do not deny it, for I have seen how you treat Iroh. You care about no one but yourself and your idiotic quest. You're as selfish and stubborn as the ancient beasts of the Fire Nation. In fact, I see no difference between you and them."

Then Agni's face changed. His lips curled up into a wicked smile, as he began to chuckle. "Yes, that will do nicely," he said to himself as he stood up straight again and walked back to his original place on the small island.

"What will?" the Fire Prince asked, already getting a bad feeling in his gut.

"I have decided your punishment," Agni started. His smile grew as he saw the color drain from the boy's face. _So he's heard about punishments from the spirits, has he? Good._ "I shall not tell you everything about it, only that you will be different when you wake up again. And since you love speaking out so much, you will be unable to talk. You will only be able to share your thoughts with those with a connection to the Spirit World. As for when your punishment ends...when this war is over and the world is in balance once more, and not a moment sooner." The great spirit paused to let the prince absorb all he was hearing. "Now, it is time for you to return."

Zuko, who was still trying to understand Agni's meaning, snapped his attention back to the spirit. "Wait! What am I supposed to do now?" he asked, even as the world around him started to fade.

He heard Agni's voice, though distant now, saying, "Find your own destiny, my son. And do not be angry with the Avatar, for he is greatly saddened by what he had to do..."

Then his world went black.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Though General Iroh was an old man, and had seen many things in his lifetime, never would he have thought he would see the Ocean Spirit go out of control like it had that night. It was a great loss for the Fire Nation, but he was pleased the people of the Water Tribe had been victorious in their battle. Though he deeply regretted mentioning the Moon Spirit to the girl in the Spirit Oasis, for she had made a great sacrifice.

However, now that the fighting was over and the restoration beginning, there was a new task on the old general's mind. _Where did that nephew of mine run off to? Agni, keep him safe!_ _You know how trouble follows that boy everywhere. _ He was thankful the blizzard had died down a great deal, so he could look for Prince Zuko out past the city.

As Iroh trudged through the snow, a bright light shone before him, momentarily blinding him. After a moment, he managed to slowly open his eyes. What stood before him took his breath away. It was the girl from the Spirit Oasis. _Princess Yue is what the Water Tribe boy called her._

He bowed respectfully to her, and she returned it with one of her own. "Iroh," Yue spoke, her voice seeming both loud and quiet at the same time. "I have come to take you to your nephew, by the request of the Sun Spirit, Agni. He knows you will except Prince Zuko, even as he is now." She gently reached for his hand, urging him to follow, and signaling she would speak no more of it.

They walked for several minutes before Princess Yue pointed in front of them. "Your nephew is just over this hill." She turned and smiled. "Take care of him. And if you ever see Sokka," she added, "tell him I'll always be watching over him."

"I will, my dear," Iroh replied, bowing once more. "Thank you for everything. And...I am sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry for, Iroh. It was my fate to become the Moon Spirit. I was only fulfilling my destiny. You are not to blame for my sacrifice," she replied with a gentle smile.

With that, the girl disappeared, leaving the general with one thing to do. He began climbing the steep hill, slipping a few times on the slick ice, but managed to make it to the top.

For the second time in an hour, Iroh's breath caught as he gazed into the valley ahead of him. He had only seen something like it once before, and had believed he would never see it again. Though this was smaller than what he remembered seeing in his younger days, there was no mistaking what it was.

"Dragon."


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Aang wasn't sure what to do. He finally had an Earthbending teacher, the champion of Earth Rumble 6, but she and Katara couldn't be within 15 feet of each other without fighting. He loved the Water Tribe girl, but he also needed to learn Earthbending, which meant he couldn't take a side without the other getting angry at him and possibly leaving. He couldn't risk that. _Why can't everyone just get along? _thought the little monk.

"Would it kill you to help out a bit, Toph?" _Uh-oh._ Katara was at it again. Aang looked over at the little Earth Kingdom noble, who was silently picking the dirt out from between her toes.

"Yes," she replied simply, flicking a dirt wad at an unsuspecting Sokka. Toph ignored all protests from the boy at this, and continued with her chore.

Katara glared daggers at her, knowing that it wasn't effecting the blind girl at all (which made her angrier), while stirring the stew with a little more force than necessary. She couldn't figure out how a girl raised as well as Toph could end up so...so _disgusting_. Just as she opened her mouth to retort, she was cut off by her brother.

"Um, Katara," Sokka started, trying to wipe the dirt off of his forehead. "I don't wanna tell you how to do your job or anything, but you're gonna break the pot if you keep that up."

A vein visibly popped out of the girl's forehead. Jerking her spoon out of the stew, and pointing at her brother, she yelled, "Well, if you know so much about _my job_, then maybe you should do it, Sokka! Ever think of that, Idea Guy?"

"Well, excuse me for thinking about the poor pot!"

Being ever the peacekeeper, Aang hurried over and grabbed the spoon that was poking into Sokka's chest. "Guys, calm down. We're all tired and hungry. We shouldn't get angry over something as little as this." He looked from one Water Tribe sibling to the other, but it was clear neither would back down. Toph was merely smirking as she moved on to the other foot.

He sighed. "Fine, I'll help you, Kata-" Just then a red blur flashed by above them, taking Aang's train of thought along with it. Brother and sister were too busy glaring at each other to notice.

"Aang?" Katara asked, seeing the confused look on the Avatar's face (once she finally looked away from her brother), caused her mothering instincts to kick in. "Is everything okay?"

"I saw something..."

"Well, we better start packing then," Sokka started. At the other's questioning looks, he clarified. "Every time Aang sees something that we didn't, it means trouble."

"Uh, guys," Toph added. The trio jumped at how close she suddenly was. "Something just landed over there," she pointed towards the river through the trees a hundred yards away, "and it feels big".

"See? What did I tell ya?" With that, Sokka began stuffing his clothes back into his pack.

Grabbing his staff, Aang told them, "I'll go check it out. You guys stay here, but be ready to leave, just in case". He opened up his glider using Airbending, and was off.

"Be careful!" came Katara's faint cry.

A moment later, he spotted the river, along with a bright red dragon dipping its head in the water, getting a drink. _Whoa_, he thought. _Dragons sure have changed in the hundred years I was gone._ Landing in a tree across from the beast, Aang tried to get a better look at it.

It was much shorter length-wise than the dragons he remembered seeing during his trips to the Fire Nation. This one was about the size of Appa, its lizard-snake-like tail the length of its body. The tip of the tail held a tuft of jet black hair, which was odd, since the old dragons had hair around their face like a lion-turtle, not on the tail. On each of the four feet were five talons, sharper than any sword, and resting on its back were two powerful wings. The neck was about half the length of the tail. It had a long snout and dangerously sharp teeth, set in powerful jaws. Its eyes were a stunning gold, the pupils the shape of a cat-fox's, and showed an intelligence not found in most animals.

The only flaw in this magnificent beast seemed to be the left side of its head. Two horns jutted from the back of its skull and curved slightly upward at the tips, though the left horn was broken with half missing. Likewise, the spikes along the jawline on the left were also broken. Many were chipped, while some were completely gone.

Aang stared in awe at the dragon. He was suddenly jarred from his revery, however, as a man walked out from the trees behind it. It was then he noticed the saddle resting at the base of the beast's neck, in a gap in the spikes along its spine. _It belongs to that old man!_

The man walked over to the saddle bags and pulled out something, though Aang was too far away to see what it was. At the contact, the dragon lifted its mighty head and turned to its rider, giving a low growl as the man patted its head and said something to it.

_Well, it's obviously friendly, since it didn't bite his hand off_, the Avatar thought to himself. _I might as well go see what that guy's doing out here._

With that, he opened his glider once again and sailed over to greet the old man and his pet dragon.

~~~ oOo ~~~

_It was lucky Uncle had to pee_, Zuko thought as he got a drink.

They had been flying non-stop for several days trying to catch up to the Avatar. Due to the group's sporadic traveling, he was tired, hungry, and ready to take a break. _Seriously, who flies from the North Pole all the way to Gaoling in such a short time?_ he asked irritably, taking a long gulp of water.

He had been getting ready to land after his uncle explained his urgent need, when he had spotted the Avatar's bison. Suddenly glad for Iroh's ever shrinking bladder, they had landed in the only other place available: next to the river.

A rustle in the trees across from Zuko caught his attention. He glanced up, still keeping his head by the water, to see the little Air Nomad staring at him. As the minutes past, and Zuko's tolerance for the constant gaze grew smaller and smaller, he began to wonder if something had happened to his uncle.

When Iroh came back, Zuko had been on the verge of leaping across the body of water in front of him and demanding what the Avatar had done with the old man. He felt his uncle pull the tea pot out of the saddle bags, and turned to looked at him.

_Uncle_, the prince started. _The Avatar is over in those trees._

"Oh?"

Anger rising at his uncle's carefree attitude, he yelled, _and he's been staring at me since you left! Do you know how irritating that is? What took you so long?!_

"Zuko," Iroh began, patting his nephew's head like he did when he was a small boy. "When you get to be an old man like myself, your...bodily functions do not work as well as they used to."

Zuko responded with a low growl. The general just chuckled and went to go brew his tea.

As the former Fire Prince walked over to lay by the small campfire his uncle had built before he left to "take care of business," the Avatar landed by the bank of the river. He twirled his glider, causing the wings to fold back into it, then walked up to greet them with a goofy smile on his face.

"It is a pleasure to see you again, Avatar Aang," Iroh greeted, bowing to the small boy.

Said boy stopped in his tracks, gaping at the Fire Nation General. "Y-you're Zuko's uncle!" he yelled, finally able to find is voice again. Iroh merely nodded, smiling while the dragon made a weird snorting noise.

_Brilliant deduction_, came a voice in Aang's head. He looked to Iroh, who was glaring disapprovingly at the dragon, who was now lying in the grass, then to the dragon, who was rolling its eyes. Then it hit him like 1,000 Earthbenders chucking bricks at him. _That voice belongs to Zuko!_

_And this is the person who's supposed to save the world? We're all dead_, the voice deadpanned.

"Zuko. Do not make fun of him for not understanding what is happening," Iroh chastised. "You were just as confused when you woke up in the North Pole."

_Fine._

Aang's eyes widened. "So the dragon _is_ Zuko? What happened to him? And what about the North Pole?"

"Slow down there, son," chuckled the old general, handing the boy a cup of tea. "I cannot answer all of your questions here. Your friends need to hear as well, for they are as much a part of this as you. And others," he glanced at his nephew," are not for me to tell. But yes, this dragon is Prince Zuko".

The Avatar looked at the teen (for he still was, despite his appearance), who seemed to have found something fascinating to look at on the ground, eyes narrowed in what appeared to be a scowl. "I'm...sorry, Zuko. I had no idea that this would happen."

_Of course you didn't_, Zuko replied_, _sounding harsher than he was meaning to. He continued more gently, _I know you didn't like what you...had to do back there. Agni told me what happened._

.

"You're not mad at me?" Aang questioned. Then thought, _he saw Agni? How?_

_...No. I was...at first. But I had a reality check. I mean, what's the point of staying mad at someone if I have to help them_ _bring balance to the world?_ With that, Zuko finally looked up at the young Avatar.

"Help?"

"Yes," Iroh piped in again. "My nephew has decided that we will help you in your quest."

"You will? But what happened to capturing me and regaining your honor?"

_That dream died when my father declared us traitors to the Fire Nation. _A pause. _ Besides, the only way I can be normal again is if the world is in peace once more. I figured we might as well help you out, like Uncle suggested, and speed up the process. He can teach you firebending, and I can be extra muscle for you guys._

Aang stared at him, not quite believing what he was hearing.

_ Don't get me wrong, I still don't like the idea of going up against my father...but I want my body back_, he finished quietly, looking back to the ground.

Iroh, feeling incredibly proud of his nephew at his confession, walked over and placed a hand on his neck, stroking the hard scales. "There is nothing wrong with not wanting to fight your father; choosing your body over his acceptance. It does not change how much _you_ care for him, Prince Zuko." He continued as Zuko turned his head to look at his uncle with an eye. "You are doing the honorable thing in choosing to aid the Avatar. Your mother would be proud, I know it," he finished with a reassuring smile.

_ Thanks Uncle_, Zuko replied, voice quivering a bit.

_ "_Then you can come," Aang said, making up his mind. He bowed and told them, "I would be honored, General Iroh, to learn from you. And Zuko," he said, meeting the other boy in the eye, "I would be honored...to be your friend." He smiled as he watched the dragon's expression go from shocked, to disbelieving, to relieved. _I never knew dragons were capable of all those facial expressions_, the twelve year old thought with a chuckle.

Finishing up the last of his tea, Iroh walked over to the river to wash out his cup. "Then if we are to begin traveling with you, we had better clean up our mess here."

"I'll help." Aang followed him to river to clean his own cup, to which Iroh thanked him.

With a yawn, Zuko stood up, stomped out the fire, then walked to the river to get one last drink while the others cleaned up and put the items in his saddle bags.

Once everything was safely stored in the bags, Zuko helped his uncle climb into the saddle. Iroh wrapped the leg straps securely around his calves, and patted his nephew's neck to show he was ready.

Zuko crouched down, then pounced into the air, talons digging into the Earth underneath him. He snapped his wings open, and with several powerful flaps, they were off, with the Avatar flying alongside them on his glider.

_Hopefully his friends don't hold grudges_, Zuko thought warily as they drew ever closer to the camp.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Katara was getting nervous. Aang had been gone for 15 minutes, and there was still no sign of him. "What do you think could've happened to him?" she asked as she paced through the campground.

"I'm sure he's fine, Katara," Sokka reassured her.

"But how do you know? Maybe...maybe that _thing_ ate him..." She paused in her pacing as realization struck her. "Oh no. We have to go help him!"

Toph, who had been growing irritated of the constant pacing, spoke up. "Relax, Sugar Queen. He's fine."

"And how would you know that?" demanded the Water Tribe girl. "For all we know, Aang could be in the belly of some...some...platypus-bear!"

Sighing, Toph reminded her, "I _told_ you; I can feel vibrations in the Earth with my Earthbending. I can feel Twinkle Toes, the big thing, and someone else over there. They're all fine, so just chill!" She emphasized her order with a kick to the ground, causing a wave of Earth to knock the older girl on her behind.

As Katara angrily scrambled to her feet, Sokka yelled, "There he is!" She followed his pointing finger to see Aang coming in to land a short distance away from them.

"Hey guys," he said nonchalantly.

"Where have you been?" demanded Katara. "We were worried about you."

"Correction," Toph piped in, "_she_ was worried about you."

Before his sister could retort, Sokka spoke up. "So what was over there, Aang?"

The Avatar glanced up, then replied, "well, actually, I thought I'd just show you".

"What do you mea-" The teen's words caught in his throat as a large red...thing landed at the edge of the campground. Sitting on its back was a jolly old man, who looked vaguely familiar.

The large vibrations the beast sent through the Earth caused the little blind girl to jump, letting out a yelp she prayed no one else heard.

As the man unstrapped himself from the saddle, Katara moved over to Aang, who was grinning at the odd pair that had just arrived.

"Aang? What...who is that?"

"These are my new Firebending teachers," the boy replied simply. He turned to his friends as he said, "guys, I'd like to formally introduce you to General Iroh," he pointed at said person, then to the animal, "and Prince Zuko".

~~~ oOo ~~~

Zuko knew this was a bad idea. It wasn't just from the glare they received from the Water Tribe peasant, or the rather obnoxious, "whaaaaaat?!" from her brother. No, he could feel deep within his gut that things were about to get annoying.

"Did this guy brainwash you or something, Aang?" the boy in blue asked, eying them suspiciously.

"Of course not," the Avatar replied. "Why?"

Katara stepped toward her friend, her hand already on her water skin. "It's just a little hard to believe that that...thing is Zuko."

"I assure you," Iroh spoke up. "This dragon _is_ my nephew. And we mean you no harm."

"Ha!" Sokka scoffed, pulling out his boomerang to point at them. "Like a person from the _Fire Nation_ wouldn't want to hurt the Avatar. You're obviously lying. It's all some sort of trap to get to Aang, isn't it? Isn't it?!"

Zuko glared down at him, puffing smoke out his nostrils into the boy's face. _Tell me you don't need him around_, he said to Aang, snapping his jaws dangerously close to Sokka's face as he sputtered.

Iroh quickly grabbed his nephew's good horn and gently jerked his head to the side, out of the Water Tribe boy's face. "Prince Zuko, first impressions are very important. I do not think _eating_ one of the Avatar's friends will gain you their acceptance, do you?"

As his uncle released the hold on his head, Zuko turned back to the boy. He growled deep in his throat as he reluctantly agreed.

_ "_Well," Sokka said, coming out of his coughing fit. "We know the monster is insane, and the guy is a liar, and yet you _still _want them to join us?"

"Actually," Toph piped in for the first time since the Firebenders' arrival. "He's not lying."

"What are you talking about, Toph?" Katara asked.

"I can tell when people are lying," she explained. "Their heartbeat speeds up, and their breathing gets weird. That guy's telling the truth, and..." she trailed off.

"And?"

She shook her head. "It's hard to explain, but...that thing...dragon. It feels..._human."_

_ That's because I am!_ the prince yelled, letting out a small roar, which caused the others (save for Iroh and the Avatar) to jump.

Aang stepped in between his friends and Zuko, saying, "Guys. Let's give them a chance to explain themselves. Something happened after we...parted ways at the North Pole. Iroh's offered to tell us, but he said we all needed to hear it together." He tried to hide the eagerness in his voice. Really, he had been dying to know what happened; exactly _how_ Zuko became a dragon, and what had made him change his mind so drastically. But he decided it would be better to hear about it when the Fire Nation royals were ready. _Better them tell us willingly, than us trying to force it out of them,_ he thought.

"I don't know..."

"No way."

"Sure, I'm up for a story."

The three replies all came at once, causing the Avatar to sigh. Before he could respond, however, Zuko strolled farther into the campsite behind the others and laid down next to Appa, crossing his front legs before him.

_They're a stubborn bunch, that one_, came a voice next to him. His eyes widened as he realized it was the sky bison that had spoken.

_You...how?_ Zuko asked, completely confused. He distantly heard the Avatar trying to reason with his friends.

_I'm Aang's Spirit Animal. I have about as much of a connection to the Spirit World as your uncle over there_. At the mention of the young Avatar, Appa gazed fondly at the boy. _He really hated leaving you, you know_, he said absently.

_So I've heard... _He paused before asking awkwardly, y_ou don't...you don't believe that guy, do you?_

_Sokka? No. He's a good kid, but he relies too much on his nonexistent instincts_, Appa answered. The bison's unusual groans as he laughed at his own joke caught the attention of the rest of the group.

"Appa? Are you okay, buddy?" Aang asked, worried his best friend may have been choking.

_He's laughing_, Zuko replied. _He thinks Sokka's an idiot._

_I didn't say that!_ Appa hollered with a loud moan.

This time it was Zuko's turn to laugh, though he tried to save his dignity, and only released a snort.

"...You can talk to Appa?" the Avatar asked.

Zuko glance at the Flying Bison next to him. _Apparently._

"That thing and Appa can talk?" came Sokka's skeptic voice. "That's it, Aang's officially gone crazy."

Iroh walked up, ignoring the Water Tribe boy's comment, and looked at the two large animals in front of him. "Hmm. This is your Spirit Animal, I presume?" Aang nodded. "I see...that explains it then."

Toph threw her hands up in the air. "Well I'm lost," she announced, bending a chair from the ground to sit on.

"You're not the only one," Katara added, agreeing for the first time with the blind girl.

"Why are we even listening to this guy in the first place? He's _Fire Nation_. Ya know? The bad guys?"

"Zuko can share thoughts with those who have a connection to the Spirit World," Iroh continued. "Your Flying Bison is connected as well, so it would seem they can hear what the other is thinking."

"Why am I being ignored?!" Angry, Sokka huffed over to stand by his sister.

"I guess I never thought of Appa being connected to the Spirit World," Aang confessed, oblivious to his friend's outburst. "But now that I think about it, it was Avatar Roku's dragon who showed me how to get to the Fire Sage's temple to talk to him on the Solstice." He looked over at Zuko, who was glaring at the bison and shaking his head that was now covered in drool, apparently from a lick from Appa's giant tongue.

His curiosity finally getting the better of him, Aang asked, "So why doesn't Zuko look like Roku's dragon and all the dragons I remember seeing in the Fire Nation?"

Said dragon abruptly stilled and looked down at the ground, his eyes unreadable. ..._You can tell them, Uncle._ _I don't want to._

"Very well, my nephew," Iroh agreed, his heart going out to the boy. "Stories are better off told if we are all sitting together," he started. "and a good cup of tea never hurt either."

"Sweet, I love tea," Toph stated as she joined the others in a small circle as the man got his supplies. She was careful to sit away from Katara, lest the girl be irked again at _everything_ that she did.

"Then we will get along just fine," the old general replied, smiling as he began brewing the tea.

Zuko laid his head on his paws, wishing these people would just accept them without explanation. _I guess chasing someone from one end of the Earth to the other doesn't give you the luxury of blind acceptance_, he sighed. _Then again, nothing in my life's been easy, why should this be any different?_

"Are you sure we should be having story time with a Firebender?" he heard Sokka whisper to the Avatar. Aang glanced at the teen and nodded.

Once the tea was brewed, and each cup distributed (though Sokka refused to drink any), Iroh took a sip, cleared his throat, and began his tale.

~~~ oOo ~~~

"This is a story long forgotten by our people. Very few have ever heard it, and few ever will. It is no longer written on any scrolls, but passed down through generations of storytellers. It goes like this: Long ago, before the time of the Avatars; even before man was given the gift of Firebending, there lived two races of dragons. One, of which we are familiar with, were kind, benevolent creatures. These were known as the Dragons of the East. They are the ones who taught man Firebending, and together they lived in harmony.

"The others, the Dragons of the West, were the opposite. They were stubborn, selfish creatures, who lived only to fulfill their own greed. They refused to teach man the art of Firebending, for they felt themselves to be far superior than any other. They believed that if they gave away their secrets, man would become greater than they, making them the lesser beings.

"Aside from their personalities, their appearances were different as well. The Dragons of the East were long and graceful, while those of the West were short and powerful. East bore manes like the lion-turtle, showing their great wisdom. West grew horns and spikes to protect themselves from their many enemies.

"There were no greater dragon amongst those of the East. All lived together peacefully, and agreed as one before taking action. In the West, however, a dragon's rank was showed by the number of toes and claws he bore on his feet. Three claws was the most common among them. It was a sign of a lower class dragon, much like the commoners we have today. Four claws meant the dragon was a noble; a high class citizen in their society. However, there was only one dragon at a time with five claws. This was a sign of the Dragon Emperor, ruler over all of the West. This is were the Fire Nation got the idea of a Firelord to rule the country."

Iroh paused to take a sip of tea before continuing. "For many years peace reigned over what is now the Fire Nation. The Dragons of the East and West lived together without conflict. However, a new Emperor eventually took over in the West. A young dragon named Sozin. He believed his race to be far better than the other. Sozin saw the East's kindness and compassion as weakness, and their generosity disgusted him. He was outraged when he learned they had taught the humans to Firebend.

"One day, he went to see the counsel of elders in the East. They argued for many days, but the elders would not be swayed in their decision to continue teaching the humans. In a fit of rage, Sozin murdered them all. After seeing what he had done, the Dragons of the East were furious. Not willing to back down, Sozin declared war on them; East against West, before fleeing back to his own territory to prepare them for battle.

"For four generations, the fighting continued. The land was stained with the blood of both dragon and human, for they helped defend their teachers from the ruthless invaders. After one hundred years of violence and bloodshed, the Spirits had had enough. Agni, the great Spirit of the Sun, sent a fireball from the sky, wiping out the remaining Western Dragons.

"The Dragons of the East were very grateful for the humans and Agni's help. They vowed to never start another war, and to forever be servants of the Sun Spirit, leading them to become the Spirit Animals of the Avatars many years later."

Setting down his cup, Iroh explained, "_this_ is why my nephew does not look like the dragons we remember. He is being punished for trying throw the world into chaos, though not intentionally, by capturing the Avatar. Until the world is in balance again, Zuko must live as a Dragon of the West, a sign of disgrace from Agni."

He looked around at the children, all listening intently to his tale, then to his nephew. He appeared to be asleep, but from the claws digging into the ground in front of him, Iroh could tell he was listening as well.

"It would seem, however," He started more cheerfully. "That Agni has not lost all hope for him." At this, Zuko raised his head up to stare incredulously at his uncle. "His feet," he pointed out.

All eyes went to the prince, who had lifted a paw to look at it.

"He has five claws," Sokka, who had obviously been paying more attention to the story than he had tried to appear, noted.

"Yes. Five claws are the sign of an Emperor. Agni has seen the good that has been hidden deep within my nephew, and has given him a second chance, as well as a sign of hope for the future," the general finished with a smile.

Zuko just stared at his foot, disbelieving what he was hearing.

_He's right, you know_, Appa told him. When the prince looked up to meet the bison's gaze, he continued. _I've talked to the Sun Spirit. We had gotten stuck in a swamp, and he appeared before me. He said there was a Dragon of the West with the heart of a Dragon of the East hidden inside that would be arriving soon. Then he requested that I look after him, and help him on _his_ journey, as well as Aang's._

_ He...said that?_ Zuko asked. _But he was so..._

_ Straightforward? Yeah, that's just how he is_, the bison laughed.

Silence overtook the campground for several minutes before Aang finally asked the question that had _really_ been bothering him. "So what happened after we left you at the North Pole?"

* * *

So, the reason behind Zuko's appearance is revealed! I personally love how that turned out. x3

And Appa talks! Who saw that coming?

*gasp* I just realized I've left Momo out of the story so far! D= I'll have to add him in later chapters...he's...out hunting for berries and bugs right now... *cough*

Anyway, next up we find out what Zuko and Iroh have been up to since the North Pole. Ha ha, flashbacks.

**Avatar belongs to Bryke and others...not me.**

R&R!


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Zuko awoke feeling...strange. He could vaguely make out his uncle calling him, but his body felt so heavy, he could barely open his eyes. After a moment, he managed to open one of them, but was quickly forced to close it again due to the sun glaring off the bright snow all around him.

Stranger still, he felt a warm hand on his...neck? That couldn't be right. His uncle always put a hand on his shoulder, not his neck...

He cracked an eye open to see the worried face of Iroh. "Zuko? Thank goodness you are awake."

Seeing that it really _had_ been the old general there and not just his mind playing tricks on him, Zuko opened his mouth to ask what had happened, but was startled when he heard a roar instead. _What was that? What's going on?_ Then it all came flooding back too him. The Avatar leaving him, his death, the Sun Spirit... _Agni, the punishment!_

At the sudden realization, he tried to sit up, ignoring the wave of nausea this caused. As he pushed off the ground with his arms, he caught a glimpse of something that surprised him. Extended in front of him, where his hands should have been, were two massive clawed feet, not unlike a lizard-snake's. Them moving to his command confirmed they were, in fact, his feet.

He whipped his head around to look at Iroh to find that the man had gotten several feet shorter. _No_, he corrected, _I've gotten taller. _Remembering Agni's words, Zuko tried directing his thoughts at his uncle. _Uncle_?he asked awkwardly.

The old man's eyes went wide as he heard his nephew's scared voice in his head. "Zuko," he started. "Are you all right?"

The prince shook his head, though the movement felt too wide, and answered, _I-I don't know. What's happened to me, Uncle? Agni said I'd be different when I woke up..._

Iroh nodded his head as all the pieces fit together at last. He had a feeling this was the Spirit's doing, but he hadn't known _which_ spirit was responsible. "It would appear, my nephew, that he has transformed you...into a Dragon of the West," he answered, sadness evident in his voice.

It felt as if his uncle had just sucked all the air out of the North Pole. _...Dragon? That's impossible, isn't it?_

The general shook his head. "The Spirits, especially one as powerful as Agni, are capable of many things. Transformations being one of them."

Zuko stared at Iroh, grief clear on the man's face, as he was sure disbelief was on his. They sat in silence for a moment before the old man said hesitantly, "Zuko, tell me, what happened?"

There was a long pause that caused Iroh to think his nephew wasn't going to answer, but after several minutes, the boy said quietly, _I had him. I had the Avatar. I had to get away with him before the Water Tribe girl woke up...so I ran. But the blizzard was just too much, the ground was collapsing and the wind was blowing, so I... I hid in a cave. _ He paused and swallowed, then said, _ After a while, __the Avatar woke up and of course, he tried to get away. He managed to get out into the snow, but he was tied up, so I grabbed him, but...somehow his friends found us...and that girl knocked me out..._

When it seemed Zuko would no longer finish what had become desperate rambling, Iroh pressed, "what happened after that?"

_...I...I died..._

That statement seemed to overwhelm Iroh. He felt surprise surge through him like a lightning bolt, and barely managed to ask, "how?"

_They left me, Uncle. The left me out there to die...and I did. _He could feel anger swelling within him until Agni's words rang through his head once more, somehow quelling it. "Do not be angry with the Avatar, for he is greatly saddened by what he had to do," he could still hear. _Agni...told me some things_, he continued,_ and said I would be different until the war was over....I'm not really a dragon, am I, Uncle?_

"I am afraid so, Prince Zuko." Iroh looked around until he saw what he was looking for. A thick sheet of ice lay on top of the snow a few yards away, free and light enough to lift and carry over to his nephew. There, he laid it on the ground before the boy.

Getting what his uncle was trying to do, the prince gazed into the ice like a mirror. What he saw made his breath catch in his throat. It wasn't his face, not the one he was used to. He tested it; moved his head this way and that, just to make sure it wasn't some trick, but the more he moved, the more it proved it _was _his face that he was looking at.

_No...this can't be happening..._ Zuko's breathing quickened as he began to loose his composure. He roared, _no! It's not fair! What did I ever do to deserve this? I just wanted to go home, is that so wrong?!_ He slammed a paw into the make-shift mirror, shattering the ice into a thousand pieces. _Why would Agni do this to me?! I can't ever face my father looking like _this_! He's taken everything from me! _With this, he threw his head back and bellowed into the sky, a thick stream of flames shooting up high above him.

Iroh, who had moved back a few steps during his nephew's outburst, walked closer to the distraught teen. "Zuko, I am sure the Sun Spirit has his reasons for doing this. Why don't we get out of here, and you can tell me what happened? I'd hate to find out what the people of the Water Tribe would do to us if we were captured." He knew this was hard on the boy, and he felt a bit guilty about rushing things, but he knew for a fact that the Water Tribe wasn't so lenient as to just let them go unharmed, should they happened to get captured. Especially after an invasion that cost them the life of their princess. No, he couldn't let that happen. Gently, he reached out and once again put a hand on the teen's long neck, stroking the hard scales lightly, and prayed the Spirits would ease his troubled mind.

After several long moments, the prince's rage calmed down to slight tremors and heavy breathing. He reluctantly nodded and attempted to move forward, only to stumble and land on his belly in the snow. Zuko cursed and swiftly stood back up as his uncle chuckled lightly, trying to lighten the heavy tension that had developed. _This isn't funny, Uncle_, he growled, tripping over his own feet once more.

"I am sorry, Prince Zuko. It is just, I have not seen you fall so much since you were a babe learning to walk," at that, his chuckle turned into full blown laughter. The teen growled deep in his throat as he attempted walking again, ignoring his uncle, in the direction they needed to go, forcing the old man to follow.

Many embarrassing and infuriating minutes later, he was finally able to walk several yards without stumbling. Iroh nodded his approval as he said, "Very good, my nephew. Pretty soon you'll even be flying!"

This stopped Zuko in his tracks. _Flying?_

"Of course! That is what your wings are for!" the general said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

The prince arched his neck behind him to look at the large wolf-bat-like wings on his back. _...How do I move them?_ he asked hesitantly.

"Hmm," Iroh pondered, stroking his beard. He was glad the boy hadn't gone on another rampage and instead seemed a little curious. "I would assume you move them like you would your arm. Try thinking about moving them, and see what happens."

Zuko did as he was told, and to both his and his uncle's surprise, his wings shot out, fulling extending from their folded position and nearly toppled Iroh over as they flew in front of him. Embarrassed, he quickly tucked his wings back in.

"Perhaps flying can wait for another time," Iroh said, catching up to his nephew, who had picked up his pace.

They traveled in silence as they skirted around the city, being sure to keep out of site (which was a difficult task with a giant red dragon amongst the white snow), until they reached the edge of the ice. There they were met with a small wooden raft that was apparently their get-away vessel. It was just large enough for two fully-grown men, which is exactly what Iroh had had in mind.

_You realize I can't fit on that, right?_

"I am afraid, Prince Zuko, that you will have to swim to the other shore."

_What?! Do you know how far that is? I'll never make it!_

"Dragons were known for their stamina. They could go for days before they began to feel tired. I am sure you will do just fine, nephew."

_ Not if I drown! I can't swim like this! I'll sink like a rock_, the prince protested. Then added quietly,_ and it's cold. I've already been in it once._

Iroh laughed. "Despite being creatures of fire, dragons were excellent swimmers. And do not worry about the cold, Prince Zuko. Your inner fire will keep you warm."

Zuko hesitated going in the water, instead he simply stared at it. After a minute, he sighed and mumbled, _this is ridiculous_. Before his uncle could say any more, he leaped up into the air and dove head first into the icy waters of the North Pole.

To his surprise, swimming came naturally to him. It took a moment to get all his legs working together, but once he got the hang of it, Zuko found he could move swiftly and easily through the water. He also found he could hold his breath much longer than he used to. _This could come in handy_, he thought as he reemerged next to the raft.

He looked up to see his uncle already on board, smiling from ear to ear. "Very good, my nephew. Shall we be off then?"

The prince replied with a growl and positioned himself behind the raft. At Iroh's questioning gaze, Zuko answered, _we can move faster if I push. I don't want to be stuck out here for weeks._

"That is a wonderful idea!" the old man beamed.

With a powerful push from Zuko's muscled legs, they were off to...somewhere.

~~~ oOo ~~~

After a week of nothing but water, the many questions from Iroh about what happened to Zuko, and the teen reluctantly trying to come to terms with his new situation, the two Princes of the Fire Nation finally stepped on Earth once more. Iroh had guessed they landed near one of the colony villages, and after about an hour of searching the area, they were able to find it.

The people were hesitant about letting an unknown creature into their town, but once they saw the great General Iroh and he assured them that the beast meant them no harm, they welcomed them with open arms. The pair was even given a place to stay up on a hill just out of town.

"You should rest, nephew," he told Zuko once the two were finally alone. The boy was visibly exhausted. His head drooped and his feet and tail dragged the ground as he struggled to move forward. "You did well to get us here so fast. I think you deserve some much needed sleep."

Zuko was too tired to respond. He merely nodded as he curled up in the courtyard, falling asleep even as his head met his paws.

Iroh smiled as he watched his nephew sleep, proud of the teen's accomplishment. If it wasn't for Zuko's nearly constant swimming, it most likely would've taken them around three weeks to make it to the colonies.

He watched as the prince's tight muscles finally began to relax after a week of working and, content that the boy would not wake for some time, went into the house they were given to make some much needed tea.

~~~ oOo ~~~

_Are you sure about this, Uncle?_

"Of course, Prince Zuko. A dragon is not a dragon unless they can fly."

_I don't know... _

"Do not tell me you are afraid of heights, nephew," the old man chuckled.

_As if! I just don't want to be up there like a stinkin' Airbender is all_, the prince defended, very aware of just how lame that excuse actually was. He hadn't wanted to come to the field out past the house in the first place for flying lessons (it had only been two days since they made it to shore, after all), but his uncle insisted that it was imperative that he learn. Zuko also had a feeling that there was some ulterior motive behind the old man's constant nagging, though what it was he couldn't figure out.

"Zuko," Iroh chastised. "You must realize that even though dragons are creatures from the Fire Nation and can create fire, that is not the only element they rely on. The other elements are a part of them as well. You know they are excellent swimmers, and they can fly with the fastest of Sky Bison. They are also as tough as any Earthbender; maybe more so. The dragons themselves are a symbol of how all the elements balance each other. One cannot live without the other; as dragons would not have survived as long as they did without Water, Earth, and Air...as well as Fire."

Zuko sighed, knowing this was an argument he wouldn't win against his uncle. Annoying or not, Iroh knew what he was talking about when it came to this sort of thing. _Fine, what do I do?_

The old general beamed. "Have you ever watched a messenger hawk take off, my nephew?"

_Of course I have_, the prince replied, getting more irritated by the minute. _Your point?_

"Though your wings are not made of feathers like theirs, one would think flying without Airbending would be much like that, no?"

After a moment of thinking it over, Zuko answered, _I guess it's worth a try_. He then walked forward (making sure not to hit his uncle this time), and leaped into the air, wings open. At about twenty feet, he tried flapping his wings, only to find the force from his jump and the air rushing around him had practically glued his wings to his sides. Panicking slightly, he thrashed his legs, which caused him to roll in the air. He could barely hear his uncle hollering instructions at him over the sound of the wind blowing by his face as he quickly descended towards the ground, where he landed in a heap with an ungraceful grunt.

Iroh quickly waddled over to his nephew as the boy up righted himself. "Maybe you should wait until you are in the air before you open your wings," he suggested kindly.

_You think?!_ the prince hollered, more out of embarrassment than anger.

They both turned suddenly as they heard a rustle in the trees at the edge of the field, cutting off Zuko's rant. A small girl, no older than nine years old, pushed her way past a bush, and hurriedly made her way to the awkward pair. "Um, General Iroh, sir?" she asked timidly. "My father has brought over what you requested..."

"How kind of him! I was afraid I would have to carry it all the way up that hill myself," the general laughed, then walked over and put a hand on her shoulder. "I shall be there shortly."

_It's fine, Uncle, you can go_, Zuko told him.

"Are you sure?" he asked, causing the girl to look questioningly at him.

_Yeah, I'll figure this out myself._

"Very well. Just be careful."

_I will, Uncle_, Zuko said as the old man left with the small girl, then to himself, _it's just one more thing in my life I'll have to work hard on..._ Then he leaped into the air for another hopeful attempt at flying.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Later that evening, Iroh made his way out to the field to check up on his nephew. Once there, he was surprised to see the teen was nowhere in sight. He glanced up at the sky just in time to see a red blur flash by.

Zuko spotted his uncle down in the field as he flew over and began his descent to greet the old general. _Here goes_, he thought, praying he didn't make a fool of himself. He had learned shortly after getting the hang of taking off and staying in the air that that was the _easy_ part. The landing was what kept getting him. Long ago had he lost track of the number of times he was forced to make a crash landing. He had grown to be thankful for the rough scales that covered his hide, otherwise he'd have been severely injured.

After much trial and error, he had learned it was easier, and safer, to glide down in a sort of spiral to help slow his descent. Though he still stumbled a bit when his feet actually made contact with the Earth, he could tell by the goofy grin on his uncle's face that the man was pleased with his progress.

"Very good, nephew!" Iroh beamed as he walked closer to the prince. "You seem to be doing a splendid job. Now all that hard work will not have gone to waste!"

Zuko eyed him skeptically, unsure if he even wanted to know what the man was talking about. Curiosity finally getting the better of him, he dared to ask, _what hard work?_

"Ah, you see, I figured we would be able to move much faster if I wasn't slowing us down. So," he continued, an excited gleam in his eye, "I had this made!" With that, he bent down and picked something up off the ground behind him, turning once he had straightened to show his nephew.

The prince stared at it for a moment, before asking, _what is it?_ He hadn't even realized the man had brought anything with him.

If Iroh's smile had gotten any bigger, his face would've split in two. "It is a saddle, of course!"

Zuko stared at the saddle for a moment, then back to his uncle. _You're kidding, right?_

"Why would I be? It is only practical and more convenient that I ride on your back while you fly."

A low growl escaped the prince's throat as he opened his mouth a bit and lifted his top lip, eyes narrowing in what could only be an enormous scowl. _I am _not_ some komodo-rhino that you can just __hop on and ride whenever you please! How'd you even get that thing, anyway?_ he demanded.

"The village saddle maker was kind enough to offer his services. Though I am surprised he was able to make one of this size in the short time that he did."

_What do you mean?_ Zuko asked, growing more irritated by the moment.

"He does not have dragon sized saddles just lying around, nephew," Iroh laughed. "He had to measure you, get the supplies, cut the right sizes into the leather, and put the saddle together. It is not an easy task, I assure you."

_ Measure?_

Sitting the saddle back on the grass, Iroh answered, "Well, in order for us to be able to make sure it fit, the saddle maker had to measure you first."

_I don't remember that._

"Yes, you were asleep at the time."

_What?! Why would you do something like that when I was asleep?_

"You had been going non-stop for a week, Prince Zuko. I couldn't very well wake you up." He chuckled, then added, "besides, the saddle maker was too afraid to even go near you if you were _not_ asleep".

_I can't believe this_, the teen seethed, clearly not finding the humor in the old man's words. _What would possess you to even _think_ I would just carry you around like some beast of burden?_

At this, Iroh's face flashed a hurt that didn't go unnoticed by Zuko. After a moment, the man said quietly, "...I am sorry, nephew. It has always been a dream of mine to fly like the Air Nomads used to. I guess it was selfish of this old man to think that his own family would help him die with no regrets..." Bending down, he picked up the saddle once more, and turned to head back to the house.

_He fights dirty_, Zuko thought to himself. He sighed and made his way over to his uncle. _Look...Uncle_, he started. _It's not that I don't want to...help you with your Bucket List or anything, it's just...._ He trailed off as the right words failed to come to him. Iroh had stopped by this point, looking up at his nephew expectantly. _Fine, all right? But just once._ This caused the old general to beam, and he quickly added, _but not until I've gotten better at flying. I don't want to crash with you on my back._

Though Zuko didn't voice it, Iroh picked up on the meaning: "I couldn't take it if I was the cause of another family member's death". The general simply nodded, and replied, "I understand, nephew". And pause, then, "and thank you".

The prince responded with a low hum, and together they headed back to the house in silence.

A/N: Well, here it is, Chapter 3! I'll admit, this chapter was very hard to write, so forgive me if it's not that good. xP

But yeah, this is the first chapter of the Zuko/Iroh time flashback, which should fill in the huge gap between the Prologue and Chapter 1.

Next up, the story gets a bit more cannon than this one was, other than the obvious things that will be different. =D

**I own nothing!**

R&R!


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Are we flying today?" Iroh asked as he relaxed on the massage table.

The two men rubbing the kinks out of the old general's muscles glanced at each other questioningly. General Iroh and his animal had been by enough for them to know he often talked to it, but it was still strange how the man seemed to carry whole conversations with the thing.

_...No_, the prince replied distractedly. Though he wasn't distracted enough to notice his uncle had said, "we". It had somehow become a daily routine in the past two weeks for them to go flying together. He honestly should have known better than to think Iroh would accept just flying once. Sighing, Zuko continued glaring holes into the ground by his forefeet.

"I see. It is because it is the anniversary, isn't it?" the man asked, careful not to call his nephew by his title.

It took several minutes before the teen finally replied, _three years ago, today, I was banished._ Laying his head on his massive paws, Zuko quietly continued, _I lost it all...I want it back. I want the Avatar, I want my honor; my throne. I want my father...not to think I'm worthless._

"I'm sure he doesn't," the general said, standing up and moving over to the dragon in the doorway. Sitting down next to him, Iroh asked, "why would he banish you if he didn't care?"

Zuko quickly stood up and glared daggers at his uncle before taking off into the air.

"Ugh, that came out wrong, didn't it?" Iroh asked the other men in the room.

Glancing at each other once more, they merely shrugged, not knowing what was going on in the first place.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Zuko returned to the house later that afternoon after a few hours of flying and trying to clear his head.

Once he had mastered landing about a week after his first attempt at flying, he found soaring through the air was an excellent way to relax. For a time he could simply exist; not weighed down with the burdens of being the banished prince.

After landing in the courtyard, he peeked his head in the window to ask his uncle what they were having for lunch, only to see Iroh with a small portion of roast duck. There wasn't nearly enough for Zuko's enormous appetite.

_Uncle_, he started. _I'm back._

"Ah, welcome back, nephew!" the man beamed. "Are you feeling better?"

_A bit. What's for lunch?_ the prince asked, already aware of what it was.

Lifting his bowl, the old general answered, "well, I am having some wonderful roast duck," a pause, "and as for you, I figured it was about time you learned to hunt."

_What?_ Zuko asked, incredulously.

"Dragons require a lot of food, my nephew. We do not want this village to starve because you ate all of their meat, right?"

Zuko scoffed, puffing small flames out his nostrils as he scowled. _Dragon or not, I'm not_ _going out there and killing my food like some savage. Next you're gonna suggest I just eat it raw!_

"That was the idea."

_No, no, NO!_ yelled the teen with a roar. _I am not eating _anything_ unless it has been properly cooked and prepared first! What do you take me for, Uncle? I'm not some...some animal!_

"Maybe not in mind, nephew, but in body, you are," Iroh pointed out, though not harshly. "Sometimes it is wise to put pride aside and do what we must for the greater good of survival. These people need the meat as much as you; maybe even more."

_I'm not doing it, and that's final, Uncle._

"...Very well, Prince Zuko," he said reluctantly. "Let us find something for you to eat, then."

~~~ oOo ~~~

Things were perfect. Everything was working in her favor, and she had even got to put that idiot of a captain in his place. That was a pleasant bonus.

Yes, Princess Azula was very pleased, indeed.

It didn't take much to get the filthy colony villagers to tell her where her fudy-dudy uncle was staying. Though none of them had seen Prince Zuko, which didn't seem right, she went regardless. None of these peasants would dare lie to her. Not when she came under the direct order of Firelord Ozai.

Upon entering the small house, Azula was annoyed to find no one present. She quickly pushed this feeling aside, however, crossed the room, and sat in a chair near the desk. This was too glorious a time for her to be bothered by such a small inconvenience.

Just as her patience was wearing thin thirty minutes later, she heard a large thump outside, followed by Iroh's boisterous laughter.

"You are doing a wonderful job!" Azula heard him say. "Though you nearly got me with that loop you threw in. I am glad I thought to ask for leg straps!" More obnoxious laughter followed.

When it was apparent neither was coming inside, she decided to go to them instead. She walked out the door, and was surprised to see, not her brother, but a weird looking dragon. Iroh was busy unhooking his legs from the saddle that rested on the creature's back, but the dragon spotted her instantly. Its eyes narrowed dangerously as it blew a puff of smoke out its nostrils.

Her uncle seemed to have felt it tense, because he followed its gaze to her, then hopped down to the ground. "Princess Azula? What are you doing here?"

Azula examined her nails as she replied, "I'm looking for Zuko. Where is he?"

Iroh looked at the dragon for an unusually long time before he nodded, and said, "I'm am sorry, he is not here."

"Really?" she asked skeptically. "Because it seems to me he's just too ashamed of his recent failure to show his face."

She startled a bit as the dragon lifted its top lip to show its massive fangs and growled deep in its throat. "I suggest you keep your _pet_ in line, Uncle," Azula spat as she regained her composure. "It's highly unbecoming. Even from someone like you."

Iroh had to move fast to get in front the advancing beast to stop it from snapping at her. "No. You do not want to make things worse for yourself, do you?" he asked it quietly. The dragon reluctantly stopped, though its eyes were still fixed on her.

Finally having enough, Azula demanded, "Uncle, tell me where my brother is now." At his silence, she added, "do you want him to be branded as a traitor? Because that's what I'll tell my father if I do not see him very soon."

The old general sighed, and glanced back at the dragon...apologetically? "He is here," he said once he returned his gaze back to his niece.

Azula's eye twitched as she yelled, "enough of your games! Just bring that idiot out now!"

Both Iroh and the dragon winced, then the creature stepped forward, head low, as the general clarified. "He is right here."

The princess of the Fire Nation couldn't believe it. Her eyes were wide as she asked, "This is Zuko?"

~~~ oOo ~~~

_What is she doing here?_ Zuko asked, as he looked into the surprised face of his little sister.

Iroh took that as his cue, and told her, "Prince Zuko would like to know what brings you out here". Before Azula could ask how he knew this, he said, "I can communicate with him because I have been to the Spirit World".

"Of course you can." She eyed them skeptically, then deciding to see if the man was telling the truth or not, said, "I've come with a message from home".

Zuko's eyes went wide and a low, questioning hum escaped him; his reaction confirming their uncle's words.

Seeing this, Azula continued. "Father's changed his mind; family is suddenly _very_ important to him. He's heard rumors of plans to overthrow him. Treacherous plots. Family are the only ones you can really trust. Father regrets your banishment...He wants you home."

Both Iroh and the princess looked at the boy, curious of his reaction, though for different reasons. When it seemed the prince had no reply, she asked, "Did you hear me? You should be happy, excited, grateful. I just gave you great news."

"I am sure your brother just needs a moment-"

"Don't interrupt, Uncle!" Azula yelled. Turning back to Zuko, she said, "I still haven't heard my 'thank you'. I'm not a messenger. I didn't have to come all this way."

Zuko stared past her, not quite sure what to make of this news. _Father regrets?_ he asked. _He...wants me back?_

Iroh glanced at his nephew sadly. "Prince Zuko. Remember what you said at the North Pole. What about your appearance? That has been bothering you for some time now. Do not forget these things in your excitement."

The teen looked at his uncle, then he turned and gazed at his long body. He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head as he said, _You're right, Uncle. I could never face Father like this. He'd be too ashamed..._

When she saw the defeated look on her brother's face, Azula caught on and quickly added, "You know, Zuzu, I think Father would be pleased with how you look. I mean, he thought you were weak before, but now look at you. You're a powerful dragon. Why, he'd probably even be proud of how strong you are now."

She watched as the dragon's expression went from heartbroken to disbelieving. He hadn't even noticed she'd used his nickname.

Seeing things were going her way, Azula told her brother, "I can see you need some time to take this in. I'll come to call on you tomorrow." And with that, she left to go back to her ship. It was only a matter of time before all her work paid off.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Zuko was overjoyed. As he paced through the courtyard, picking up things he thought they would need, only one thing was on his mind: _ We're going home. After three long years! It's unbelievable._

Iroh, on the other-hand, wasn't. "It _is_ unbelievable," he said, stroking his beard. "I have never known my brother to regret anything."

_Did you listen to Azula?_ the prince asked. He stopped his pacing, then said, _Father's realized how important family is to him. He cares about me!_

Standing, the general yelled, "I care about you!" Quickly calming himself once again, he continued. "And if Ozai wants you back, well, I think it may not be for the reasons you imagine."

Getting down to eye-level, Zuko said coldly, _You don't know how my father feels about me. You don't know anything._

"Zuko, I only meant that in our family, things are not always what they seem."

The teen's eyes narrowed as he retorted, _I think you're exactly what you seem; a lazy, mistrustful, shallow old man, who's always been jealous of his brother._ Sending a puff of smoke from his nostrils, he turned, leaped into the air, and flew out of sight.

Iroh looked down at the ground. "I should not have left the saddle on him today," he said quietly.

~~~ oOo ~~~

"You called for me, Princess?"

"Yes. I want you to send a letter to my father."

"And what would you like it to say, Your Highness?"

"Tell him I'll be returning home shortly."

"Is that all?"

"...And tell him I'll be bringing some wild game along with me for him to enjoy."

A/N: Enter Azula! I've gotta admit, she is really fun to write. Being evil is fun. =D

Other than that, there's not much to say about this chapter. Some cannon stuff, Zuko is a spoiled brat, yadda, yadda, yadda.

**I own nothing!**

R&R!


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Iroh awoke with a start. He hadn't even realized he'd fallen asleep. After Zuko stormed off the night before, the old general had stayed up and waited for the young prince to return.

He quickly made his way out to the courtyard where the boy slept, only to find him nowhere in sight. "I hope you have not done anything rash, nephew," Iroh said as he made his way down the large steps that led to the village.

Halfway down, he gazed out to the harbor his niece had to have docked at to reach them. What he saw washed a wave of utter dread over him.

The ship was gone.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Zuko was confused. He was finally going home; he should be happy! Yet he couldn't shake the feeling something wasn't right. To make matters worse, he now felt guilty about leaving without saying anything to his uncle.

After his fight with Iroh, he had gone out and flown for several hours before coming to a conclusion: _If Uncle is so against going home, then let him stay. See if I care. I'm going home._

Agni's punishment came to mind, and he quickly pushed it aside. _Azula said Father would be proud._

_But Azula always lies_, a voice in the back of his head reminded him. It sounded unusually like his uncle.

_Father will be happy I've become so strong_, he had protested.

_ You don't really believe that, do you?_

The prince had no answer as he landed on the large Fire Nation ship. He let out a roar to alert his sister of his presence. Dawn was still an hour away; she wouldn't be awake yet.

Or so he had thought.

~~~ oOo ~~~

A wicked smile broke out on Azula's face as she watched the chaos her brother had caused throughout the crew.

She hadn't been able to sleep but for a few hours that night. The excitement of what was to come had been too much for her to keep fully contained. There was no doubt her plan would work. It had only been a matter of when they would show up.

As she walked through the doorway leading to the deck, she was surprised to see their uncle wasn't there. "So Zuzu's decided to come alone, has he?" the princess asked herself. "Oh well. Father will be too 'proud' of what I've brought to care about one missing fat man."

"Hello Brother," she said, walking up to greet the dragon.

Zuko rumbled and lowered his head in acknowledgment.

"I'm glad to see the rumors weren't true."

The boy cocked his head to the side questioningly.

"People were beginning to question your loyalty. They were saying you wouldn't come back, even if you were given the chance to."

Scoffing, Zuko shook his head.

"Yes, I figured as much." Looking at her nails, the princess continued. "It's amazing what people will say these days."

A long silence followed, then Azula turned to head back to the helm of the ship. "The sun will be up soon. We might as well head out now." The prince couldn't see the malevolent smile that spread across his sister's features. "After all, the sooner we leave, the sooner you'll get home." She then began barking orders as she disappeared through the doorway, leaving Zuko alone with his thoughts.

It was this that had left him in the state he was currently in: confused, guilty, irritated, and impatient.

He had curled up on the deck after his sister went inside, and had grown very tired of all the stares he was getting from the soldiers on board. Many would stop and gaze at him; some even brave enough to attempt to touch him. To this, Zuko would growl and snap his jaws dangerously close to their arms. Though he enjoyed the look on their faces, this quickly got old.

They had only been sailing a few hours, but it felt like a lifetime to the returning banished prince. Several times when his nervousness and guilt proved to be too much, he had nearly flown back to his uncle.

With no one around who was able to communicate with him, Zuko found more and more thoughts entering unbidden into his mind. _What if Uncle gets hurt? What if Father is disgusted with how I look? What if Azula lied again?_

As if she had been reading his thoughts, Azula gracefully made her way onto the deck. Zuko didn't rise to his feet to greet her. Instead he merely glanced her way and flicked his tail, hoping she'd get the hint he wished not to be disturbed. Whether his hints went unnoticed or were ignored he wasn't sure, though he had a feeling it was the latter.

She stood there a moment, waiting for her brother to lift his head and look at her, but when he made no other movement than with his tail, she sighed and asked, "can you fly?"

Curious, Zuko finally looked up at the princess, hesitated a minute, then nodded.

"For how long?" The prince looked around for some way to answer, but upon finding nothing, shook his head. Seeing this, Azula asked him, "can you make it to the Fire Nation capital? It'll take about another week on this ship to get there. My guess is it would take about three days if you flew. Can you fly for that long?"

Zuko glanced from his sister to his wings resting on his back, then back again and nodded. In truth, he wasn't sure if he could, but he knew he'd go insane if he had to lay on this ship doing nothing for an entire week.

"Good." With that, Azula snapped her fingers and a solider came out from below deck with a sack full of...something. From the smell, Zuko assumed it was food. The man bowed as he handed the bag to the Fire princess, then went back where he came from. The girl made her way over to her brother's side and slung the sack over his saddle, where she secured it with straps hidden in the back.

He must have had a questioning look on his face, because she said, "no use waiting around here, right?" Then she hauled herself up into the saddle.

Feeling her impatience, Zuko stood, then arched his neck to glance at his sister before he nudged her shin with his snout.

Azula quickly saw what he was trying to say (even if her first thought was to punch his large skull for daring to touch her without her permission) and tied the straps around her legs.

Giving a nod of approval, Zuko made his way to the bow of the ship and roared, hoping for his sister's sake, she caught what he was trying to tell her and hung on tight. He then leaped into the air, letting out an unintended snort at the girl's slight yelp as he caught her off guard. Just as it seemed they would plunge into the depths of the ocean, the prince snapped his large wings open, his tail brushing through the water, and with several powerful flaps they were soaring high over Azula's royal ship.

He circled the vessel a few times, enjoying the short intake of breath he heard as the princess saw how small her large mode of transportation seemed from the sky. This was his territory, and Zuko was reveling in the feeling of finally having an advantage over the prodigy that was his little sister. For once, _he_ was the one in control, and oh how it felt good. He bellowed as he circled the barge once more before shooting in the direction of the Fire Nation. Towards home.

~~~ oOo ~~~

The following days were spent in an awkward silence. Azula had quickly grown tired of her brother's lack of speech capability and had stopped talking all together, and after the thrill of being so high up had worn off, she began to get bored of the endless water zooming by them.

But on the third day of their flight, they finally spotted land. A couple hours later, they were soaring over their home. The sight that met them was incredible. Every house bore the bright reds and yellows of their nation proudly, the rising Sun adding a florescent glow to everything. These mixed with the greenery of their tropical homeland to create a beautiful scene that looked more like a painting than an actual place. All this sat in the middle of an ancient volcano, giving the area a sense of danger.

This was the Fire Nation. This was home.

Zuko took a moment to gaze at the scenery around him before heading for the palace in the center of the city. There, he gently landed in front of the massive building and waited for Azula to climb off.

Not bothering with her things, the Fire princess made her way to their home, adding a quick, "wait here," as she past by her brother. The boy nodded in response, then watched her disappear into the giant doorway of the palace.

_I can't believe I'm actually back home_, Zuko thought, taking in the elegant decor of the place he had spent most of his life in. He quickly noticed everything was exactly how he had remembered it; down the the positions of the most inferior guards, nothing had changed. He let out a pleased hum as he settled down to wait for his sister to return.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Azula couldn't contain her grin as she bowed before Fire Lord Ozai.

"You've finished you mission so soon?"

"Yes, Father. Though I wasn't able to bring Uncle along, I think you will be ple-"

Ozai stood on his throne, the flames before him growing higher. "What makes you think I would be pleased if you were not able to bring _both_ of them along?" Lifting the letter his daughter had sent him, he continued. "And what is this foolishness about wild game? I did not send you out on a hunting trip, Princess Azula."

Knowing better than to speak out, the girl bit her tongue and waited for her father to descend the stairs of his throne and make his way to her. He stood in front of her a moment, and she took that as her cue. "Father, I assure you, you will be most...amused with this game." She paused, waiting for a retort. When none came, she said, "you see, I found something interesting went I found Prince Zuko."

"So you did find him." It wasn't a question. "And you made sure to bring him here?"

"Of course. But if I may, I warn you that his time away from the Fire Nation has...changed him. It is how we were able to make it here so quickly after I sent out the messenger hawk."

Curiosity piqued, though not showing, Ozai asked, "changed how?"

Finally looking her father in the eye, Azula answered, "It would appear the Spirits have transformed him into a dragon".

The Fire Lord stared at his daughter skeptically. "And how exactly do you know the dragon you found really is Zuko? Did he tell you it is him?"

"Actually it was Uncle who told me. It would appear that Zuko cannot speak. Only to people who've been to the Spirit World. But it is him. Of this, I am sure. I have been with him the past few days, and the way he acts is definitely like my brother."

A long silence followed, then Ozai said, "...I see. Though he may be a tea-loving buffoon, Iroh knows much about the dealings of the Spirits, being the superstitious fool he is. If he says this is Zuko... Let us go see _my son_ then, Princess Azula."

"Yes, Father."

~~~ oOo ~~~

Zuko was growing very impatient as he waited for his family to come out. He hated not being able to fit in buildings. Even one as large as the Fire palace, his scales would most likely tear up something. And his claws would, no doubt, ruin the floors. He sighed as he envisioned the interior of his home. How he longed to walk those hallways again. Maybe he could at least sit out by the turtle-duck pond...

The prince was brought out of his thoughts as he heard footsteps coming from inside the palace doors. A few minutes later, he saw who the sound belonged to. He swallowed hard to control the sudden emotions raging through him as he bowed low to the person growing closer to him with every step.

_Father._

"Welcome back, Prince Zuko."

**A/N: Chapter 5! :D So yeah, this is where I'm taking this story away from cannon for a while. And we get to see Ozai! So soon! I really enjoy evil characters. They're fun. :3**

**Oh! And for anybody who wants to see what dragon!Zuko looks like in _my_ head, there are links on my profile to my dA pictures. Go look! **

**I own nothing!**

**R&R!**


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"Welcome back, Prince Zuko."

Surprise surged through the teen. _He knows who I am…? Azula must have told him…_ The look on his sister's face disturbed him, but he blamed in on mere paranoia and nerves.

A long silence followed, in which Zuko could feel the stares of everyone in the large courtyard boring into him like a thousand needles.

After a moment that felt much longer than it actually was, the prince raised his head to look at his father. Ozai then began making his way around Zuko, nodding to himself as he examined his son.

_Azula was right_, he thought. _Dad really is proud of how I look now._ Joy and relief flooded him.

What the Fire Lord said next, however, brought all of that crashing down.

"You were right, Princess Azula. A pelt like this would look nice in the royal palace." Rounding to the dragon's front, he continued. "We could mount the head in my throne room. Then all would see it was I, Fire Lord Ozai, who conquered the last dragon, instead of my foolish brother."

Zuko's eyes went wide. Taking a step back, he asked, _wha-what are you talking about, Father?_ Then to his sister,_ what is he talking about?_

The prince growled with frustration as his family continued, not hearing his questions.

"It would be killing two birds with one stone, really," Azula told the Fire Lord, a wicked gleam in her eyes.

"Yes, you're right, Azula. You would be the rightful heir to the throne, and the palace would have some new decorative pieces."

Azula then snapped her fingers. Not even a minute later, a dozen palace guards and another dozen Yu Yan archers stormed outside, surrounding the young dragon.

Panicking, Zuko jumped into the air. Before he could open his wings, a large chain wrapped around his middle, pinning them to his sides. A powerful force pulled on the other end of the chain, causing the prince to quickly fall back down to Earth. He then saw exactly why the force had been so strong. The chain was attached to four large komodo-rhinos.

After landing in a painful heap on the hard stone, Zuko glared at his sister. _She set me up!_

_You're just now figuring that out?_ That all to familiar voice asked him.

Ignoring it, Zuko snapped his powerful jaws at the nearest guard. This resulted in a hard jab to the head with the blunt end of spear. Even with the hard scales that protected his flesh, the teen saw stars.

He shook his head to clear his vision, only to see the soldiers closing in on him. The archers stayed back, bows drawn. He glanced at Ozai, hoping to see his father doing something, _anything_ to stop this madness. He was the prince! He shouldn't be in chains!

Yet here he was. Lying on the ground in front of his home, unable to move due to the restraints that had somehow made their way around his front and back legs. His father and Azula; his own family, made no movement to help. They instead both shared the same malevolent smile as they watched the demise of the worthless Fire Prince.

_How could you do this to me!_ Zuko roared. He knew full well that neither could hear his angered plea, but he couldn't hold back the raw emotions that raged within him.

"Really Zuzu, you're acting like a child," Azula scolded, examining her nails. "At least save _some_ dignity before you die."

"Prince Zuko, contain yourself!" The Fire Lord ordered, ignoring his daughter's remark.

Zuko heard none of this. He thrashed in his bondage, trying to break the chains restricting his movements. One brave guard dared to grab the teen's massive head to hold it still. Red filled Zuko's vision as he saw the man moving towards him.

_Don't touch me!_ He yelled, sending a large stream of fire from his mouth toward the unsuspecting soldier.

A bloodcurdling scream filled the expanse of the courtyard. As the familiar stench of burning flesh met the prince's nostrils, he realized too late what he had done.

_No…_

Chaos followed. Firebenders rushed to the fallen man, trying to pull the flames off of him. But the dragon's flames proved to be too strong for them.

Seeing his chance, Zuko whipped his head around and, grabbing the chain with his teeth, snapped it in two with a strong tug. He quickly did the same to his legs, hoping (though not regretfully) that the guard caused enough of a commotion for him to get away safely. His world may have been crumbling, but the prince wasn't going to just roll over and die without a fight.

Unfortunately, he forgot about the Yu Yan. He was suddenly reminded as he felt several sharp objects bounce off the hard scales of his side. Glancing over at them, he saw they were already stringing their bows for the next attack. He had to move fast.

Without a second thought, Zuko jumped into the air a second time, praying they hadn't brought any more chains with them. As he rose higher, the prince's hope for survival grew as well. That is, until he felt a sharp pain in his right wing. He looked over to see an arrow protruding from the thin membrane, but he pressed on. _I have to get out of here._

The teen cried out in pain as he felt several more arrows pierce the soft flesh of his wings. He quickly pulled them in as a dozen more flew past him, causing him to lose altitude fast. Another cry escaped him as an arrow found its way into the tender flesh behind his right foreleg before he landed on the hard stone in front of his home.

"How pathetic, Zuzu," Azula sneered as she walked up to the fallen prince, still keeping a safe distance between them. "You honestly believed Father wanted you back." A pause. "The only reason he would _ever_ invite you to come back home would be to lock you up so you couldn't embarrass him anymore. Then again, it would seem he really likes my idea of using those lovely scales of yours as decorations for the palace."

Zuko growled at his sister. Glancing at Ozai, he saw the man making no move to help, his words confirming what the princess had said.

"Get him, you idiots!" the Fire Lord yelled. "I won't have him escaping; if he does, it will be your heads!"

The prince had heard enough. He released a roar that seemed to shake the Earth around them, then, ignoring the pain in his leg and wings, shakily rose to his feet and launched himself into the air. His father's shouts grew fainter as he ascended higher and higher above the Fire Nation palace. Trying to dodge the many arrows the Yu Yan fired at him, Zuko flapped his powerful wings as hard and as fast as he could until he was a good distance away from his home country.

He knew it would take days for them to have ships prepared to depart, yet he didn't slow down his flying for another two hours.

Once he was sure no one would be able to catch him, Zuko stilled his wings and soared toward the water below, where he landed with a large splash. The cool water eased his aching muscles, but he hissed as salt made its way into his still bleeding wounds. Pushing the stinging pain aside, he began to swim; his body weaving from side to side like a giant eel-hound to propel him faster, a technique he dared not try while pushing the raft that carried Iroh for fear of tipping it over.

Zuko had a feeling if he stopped to rest, he would simply sink below the surface, never to be heard from again. _Would anyone even care if the failure of a prince just disappeared?_ He asked no one in particular as the full reality of what had happened finally set in.

"So you're just going to give up_?_" A voice asked him. It sounded familiar, but he couldn't place it.

_What else am I supposed to do?_ Zuko replied, ignoring the part of his mind that told him he had finally gone crazy. _My father wants me dead, it was my sister's idea, and I ran away from the only family that ever cared. Not to mention, I'm a freakin' dragon…I can't even talk to anyone_, he finished quietly.

The voice sighed. "So because you ran away, you think Iroh no longer cares about you? Are you really still so dense as to believe that?"

_What are you-?_

"You hurt him, Prince Zuko; disappointed him, but nothing you do could ever make him stop loving you. He's already lost one son, don't make him go through it all over again just because you think there's no hope left in the world. As for being a dragon, you already know what you must do about that."

_But I don't think I…_ The prince felt something tap against his shoulder. Arching his neck around, he saw his dagger had slipped out of its place on his saddle and was floating next to him. He had read the inscription so many times, he didn't need to pull the blade out to know what the voice was trying to tell him: "Never give up without a fight".

_Fine_, Zuko said. _If it's a fight you want, it's a fight you'll get._ He grabbed the knife in his teeth and shoved it as best as he could back into the bag on the side of the saddle, then dove down into the freezing water, going a good distance before pushing upward with his strong legs. He broke threw the surface like a missile, sending droplets of water skyward all around him. Once he reached the pique of his jump, Zuko snapped his wings open, no longer feeling the arrows in his new determination, and flew in the direction that he would most likely find his uncle: East.

"Good luck, my son," Agni said.

Three days later, Zuko finally made it to the Earth Kingdom. He was beyond tired and terribly hungry, but he flew over the land for an entire day before it at last caught up to him. His wings started to spasm, then quit working all together, sending him hurtling toward the woods below. He tried his best to avoid trees as they flew past him, but he barely had the energy to do anything very effective. The young dragon smashed into several trunks, knocking some completely over, before he finally skidded to a halt in a large clearing.

He lay there on his side, breathing heavy, stomach clenching in on itself from hunger, and wounds burning, too exhausted to move. His sister's voice resounded fresh in his mind, as if she had just said it: "At least save _some_ dignity before you die".

_I can't_, Zuko said. _I can't do this…I'm sorry Uncle._ He felt something wet run down the scales on his face. He didn't know dragons could cry, but he was. Digging his claws into the dirt, he let out all of his pain and anguish in a low rumble that filled the area with a sense of deep sorrow.

The prince was all too grateful when the darkness wrapped him in the sweet embrace of nothingness.

~~~ oOo ~~~

The girl had been wandering through the forest, looking for medicinal herbs when she heard the noise; such a pained cry it brought tears to her eyes, though she didn't know why.

Quickly, but quietly, she made her way towards the sound. What she saw when she broke through the trees on the edge of the clearing shocked her. She had never seen a creature like this before. It was so beautiful, yet so dangerous looking.

Easing her way closer, she finally noticed something she had not: this animal was hurt. Several arrows had punctured the soft membrane of its wings; many were still there. The most painful looking of the wounds, however, was the arrow that was embedded in the back of its right foreleg. It was deep and, judging from the amount of dried blood on the creature's leg, it had lost quite a bit of blood from this one.

Its breathing was shallow, too shallow. _I have to help it_, she thought. Putting a gentle hand on the animal's neck, the girl quietly told it, "Hold on, I'm gonna make you feel better, okay?"

With that, she headed back the way she had come to grab the supplies she needed to save this strange creature. _I just hope mom doesn't object too much._

* * *

A/N: So sorry for the late update. My family painted our house; we went on vacation, then my grandmother passed away, so I haven't had much time to write. Hopefully life will calm down a bit now so I can work on this story some more.

Also, virtual cookies to anyone who can guess who the mysterious girl is. And if you can't, you need to go watch Book 2 again. _

**I own nothing! All things Avatar are not mine, unfortunately. Dragon!Zuko, however, is so :p**


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

As Zuko slowly made his way back into the realm of consciousness, he heard something he was unaccustomed to. Someone was singing; a soft melody with a calm feel to it, though the words were lost to him. Groggily, he opened his eyes, moaning a bit from the dull ache pounding in his head.

"You're awake," he heard someone say. Lifting his head slightly, Zuko saw a girl around his own age. She had brown hair pulled back into a long braid, with gentle eyes the same color, and wore a peach and white dress-like outfit that he had never seen before. At least, girls from the Fire Nation never wore anything like that. "My name is Song," she continued. "What's yours?"

Zuko stared at her blankly.

Song chuckled. "I don't suppose you can understand me, can you?"

The prince stretched his paw out; wincing slightly at the pain from the arrow still lodged in his leg, and scratched a character into the dirt in front of the girl with a claw.

"…Li?" she asked, a bit confused. Song looked at him curiously. "Your name is Li?"

Zuko nodded.

"You can understand me?"

Another nod.

Song smiled brightly, then turned and picked up a basket. "I have some things here that will help you. Do you…do you mind if I pull the arrows out?"

The prince eased onto his stomach, careful not to jostle his injured leg, and unfolded his wing for her to reach.

"I take that as a yes?" she said, moving forward a bit nervously. At the creature's nod, she grabbed her knife to cut the arrows in two. As she worked, Song tried her best to fill the silence. "So how can you understand what I'm saying?"

Zuko scratched his brief answer in the dirt once again. "Used to be human. Spirits turned into dragon."

Song paused in her application of antibacterial ointment to an open wound. "Why would they do that?"

He reached forward again to answer, but hesitated, then pulled his paw back, shaking his head.

"…It's okay," she told him. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to…"

Neither said any more as Song finished removing arrows and covering holes in his wings. Then it was time to move to his leg. "I'm going to have to pull this out," she said. "…It's gonna to hurt, so just…bare with me, please."

She took her knife and cut small slits on either side of the wound then, gripping the shaft tightly, pulled it as hard as she could. The arrow came out easily, though blood began gushing from the hole again and Zuko hissed with pain. She quickly poured alcohol on it (which brought forth another hiss) to kill off any bacteria, and wrapped his leg tightly in a bandage.

He turned his head and nudged her arm with his snout, which Song had a feeling meant "Thank you". She was about to tell him he was welcome when a loud growl rumbled through the clearing. It took her a moment to realize it had been Li's stomach that had actually made the noise.

She giggled as she asked him, "Would you like to stay for dinner? My mom always makes too much roast duck; I don't know if we have enough for you to get completely full, but it would be better than starving."

The dragon looked away embarrassed. He began to shake his head "no" when his stomach growled again, making him change his answer. Reluctantly, he agreed.

"Great!" Song exclaimed happily. Pointing to their left, she told him, "My house is that way."

Avoiding putting pressure on his injured leg, Zuko slowly stood. He glared at the trees as he realized he couldn't possibly fit through the dense forest.

Song seemed to catch on and, glancing at his wings, said, "Um…I could meet you there…?"

Zuko limped over beside the girl and knelt as best as he could, motioning to her with his snout to his saddle.

"Are you sure that's okay?" she asked awkwardly, twiddling her thumbs and looking away shyly. "…I mean, it was obviously meant for someone more important than some girl you just met."

Rolling his eyes, the prince moved his head behind her, giving her a slight push towards him. _Why's she so nervous?_ He thought to himself as she hesitantly climbed into the saddle. Once she was securely seated, with her legs firmly in the grip of the straps, Zuko awkwardly stood back up and, grabbing Song's basket in the grasp of his right claws (it was light enough as to not hurt the wound any farther) launched himself into the air. He winced as he opened his wings, the bitter wind biting at the many holes in them.

Within a few minutes, the teen heard Song holler, "There it is!" over the sound of the wind rushing past them. Giving a grunt of understanding, Zuko glided down to land in front of the modest sized house.

The woman tentatively made her way to the door when she heard a large thump in her yard. She picked up her pace when she heard the familiar sound of her daughter's voice along with the heavy breathing of something, and from the volume of it, the thing sounded big.

"Are you okay, Li?" Song's voice rang out through the large clearing their house sat in.

She heard no reply come from whomever her daughter was talking to.

Zuko stiffened as the front door slid open and a loud gasp could be heard over the cacophony of the forest around them.

Feeling the dragon tense, Song followed his gaze to see her mother standing on the front porch, eyes wide and jaw on the floor.

"…Song?" The woman asked shakily. "What…what is that thing?"

The girl smiled brightly as she answered. "Mom, I'd like you to meet Li," she placed a hand on the base of his neck as she continued. "Li, this is my mom."

Said mother was surprised to see the creature incline its head in acknowledgement.

Song chuckled at the look of pure confusion on her mom's face before doing her best to explain the boy/dragon's circumstances with the little bit of information she herself had been given. She then told of how she had found him injured and unconscious in the trees outside the neighboring village.

After a long pause, the woman finally managed a quiet, "I see…" Then a bit louder, "well…Li, dinner is almost ready, so just…make yourself at home". Though try as she might to seem polite and carefree, Zuko still caught the warning glances she sent her daughter every minute or so.

At Zuko's questioning gaze as she went back inside, Song whispered, "Don't worry, she's just upset because I brought someone else home with me last week". She chuckled. "The poor old man was so thirsty, he made tea out of the White Jade; a poisonous plant that grows around here."

_If it was Uncle_, Zuko thought somberly,_ he would have thought it was something else and drank it, despite the risk_.

"If you'd like," Song continued, unaware of the dragon's sudden dark mood, "you can stay and rest in the stable. It might be a bit of a tight squeeze, but there's more room in there since I gave Mushi our ostrich-horse. It shouldn't be too bad now". Pausing, she added, "Mom wasn't too thrilled that I gave away our only means of transportation, but I had to do something. He seemed really desperate".

Zuko scoffed. _Everyone's desperate now days_. He knew she couldn't hear him, but talking helped keep him sane. Though he was never much of a talker to begin with, his sanity was something he was determined to keep.

After showing him to the stable, Song went inside to help her mother prepare dinner, hoping they had enough to at least keep Li from starving.

Dinner was one of the most awkward experiences the prince had to suffer through in his young life. Not only did they eat outside with him, despite his desperate but futile pleas to be left alone, they insisted on having a conversation. Though it was, for the most part, one-sided, Zuko only responding with either a shake or nod of the head. He was informed that Song's father was off fighting in the war and that their village had been attacked when she was younger, leaving a large scar on her leg. He sympathized with her somewhat on this, knowing the pain of being scarred, but immediately recoiled when she tried to touch the broken spikes on his face, claiming the Fire Nation had hurt him as well.

Zuko quickly gobbled down his food then, trying to change the subject, scratched out, "Mushi?" in the dirt. He ignored the quiet, "It knows how to write?" coming from the direction of Song's mother.

Song brightened as she replied, "He's a very kind old man. Though he's not very good at botany," she laughed. "He said he was looking for his nephew." The dragon visibly straightened, staring at her with an intense golden gaze, eyes wide with surprise. Seeing his curiosity, she explained. "He said his nephew was lost, in more ways than one, and he's trying to find him. He said he lost his son in the war, and his nephew is the only family he has left."

With a shaky claw, Zuko managed to scribble out, "appearance?"

"Well," Song started. "He's short…kinda round. He has gray hair that comes down to his shoulders, but he's bald on top…um…"

"He's very charming," her mother added, much to Song's chagrin.

"He also has eyes almost as gold as yours…Oh! And he absolutely loves tea."

At that, the dragon's breathing quickened as he stood up, ignoring the pain that shot through his injured leg. _Uncle!_ So caught up was he in this revelation, that he didn't feel the picket fence crushing under his large feet, nor did he feel his tail smash into the side of the stable.

"…Li?" Song could see he was distraught, but she couldn't figure out what could be the cause unless… "He's your uncle, isn't he?" she asked quietly as her mother pulled her toward the house.

She received no reply as the boy leaped into the air without even looking back. Slowly, Song slid the door closed, the large red figure already but a small dot on the dark horizon.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Zuko had never realized just how big the Earth Kingdom actually was. Sure he'd seen maps and had been to various villages, but he never had to travel alone searching for a needle in a haystack. There were most likely billions of people living on the world's largest continent. The task of finding one old man who was as good at blending in as Iroh just seemed impossible.

He couldn't count how many times he had beat himself up over not asking Song which way his uncle had headed. _Was it really so hard to wait and ask directions? Uncle would probably laugh if he were here; tell me _once again_ how I never think things through. Then again, I wouldn't be searching this spirits forsaken place if he were here._

The prince growled as his stomach let out one of its own. It had been three days since he left the young healer's house and his body was reminding him for the hundredth time that he hadn't eaten since then. Not that the small duck he had been given was enough to even scratch at his hunger.

Sighing, he sailed down to land on the large plain he had been flying over for the past day and a half. His wings were aching from the dozens of holes in them; his leg throbbing with each beat of his heart. Zuko was just about to settle down for a small nap when he heard it. It was faint, but he could hear the whinnying of a flock of zebra-sheep over the hill not even fifty yards away. He had been so lost in his thoughts, he realized, he must not have even seen them as he flew right over top of them.

His stomach tightened painfully as his hunger hit him full force. _I can't…I'm not an animal…I can't just…_

_Sometimes it is wise to put pride aside and do what we must for the greater good of survival_, his uncle's voice echoed in his mind.

Swallowing hard, Zuko slowly got to his feet and, as quietly as possible, made his way to the top of the hill, pressing himself as low to the ground as he could once he got there.

The effect was instantaneous. Once he laid eyes on the fluffy striped creatures, it was as if every saliva gland in his mouth had opened their floodgates, causing the young prince to continually lick his chops. He cringed at the blood lust that quickly rose up inside of him.

Before he could back out of his task, he pounced on the nearest animal. Zuko was surprised at their speed. His target bolted, shooting off to the side out of the large predator's reach.

Cursing, Zuko blew a stream of fire out of his mouth. This proved unwise, however, as it just made the jumpy animals run farther away. _Breathe_, he told himself._ Just calm down. You can do this. Just look for the right one…there! _On the far side of the flock stood a particularly feeble, though healthy looking zebra-sheep. Most likely an old animal, but it would be an easier catch.

An idea formed in his head then and, seeing no better option, he jumped into the air. He flew straight up before turning toward his target into a dive at bullet speed. Right before reaching the animal, Zuko snapped his claws open, grasping the startled zebra-sheep within his unyielding talons.

He carried it off a ways before finally landing, his prey already dead from the vice grip it was held in.

The reality of what he was about to do finally sunk in as he stared down at the unmoving creature. _Agni, I can't do this._ Zuko said to himself, voice quivering.

As if in encouragement, his stomach let out a loud growl.

_Just…think of something else…_ Racking his brain for a new train of thought, one pair in particular came to mind. _That's right. This is all _their_ fault. Those stupid Water Tribe peasants. If they hadn't interfered, none of this would have happened. I'd be bringing the Avatar back to my father as a _human_, and my honor would be restored. I wouldn't have to worry about living like a stinkin' savage out here in the middle of nowhere!_

Letting his anger fuel him, Zuko closed his eyes and bit into the tender flesh of the zebra-sheep, bones crunching between his massive jaws. He was surprised to find it tasted…really good. The salty, yet slightly metallic taste of the blood mixed with the meat was like Heaven as it ran down Zuko's throat, eagerly welcomed by his stomach. All thoughts flew out of his mind as he took another bite, and another, eating savagely until there was no evidence that there had ever been an animal there other than the large red spot staining the grass.

Licking the blood off of his mouth, the prince turned back around toward the flock, realizing that one zebra-sheep was not enough. He wouldn't, of course, eat all of them, but a couple more couldn't hurt, right?

That thought in mind, he used his newly acquired technique to catch his fill of the tasty fluff-balls; his fill being four more of them.

Belly satisfied, Zuko flew to a large patch of trees to settle in for some much needed rest. He would start the search for Uncle again tomorrow.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the late update. I had a really hard time getting this chapter written out. My brain was put in the juicer for this one, but I managed to get it at least satisfactory, albeit a bit late. xP

As always, I own nothing.


	9. Chapter 8

-gasp- An update so soon? Yes! To make up for such a long wait the last two chapters, I have worked hard to bring you a faster update. Enjoy! :D

And now I need to sleep, since it's almost 2AM. -_-'

* * *

Chapter 8

Zuko was hungry again. It had been two days since his feast on the zebra-sheep, and he hadn't seen any other life form like it since. _I must be getting closer to the desert_, he thought absently, not sure if he really was or not.

Every few hours or so, he was forced to walk as the throbbing pain from his wounds became too much to bare. It slowed his progress, but it was better than permanently damaging his wings. He normally stayed away from the roads to avoid unwanted attention, but he hadn't seen anything much larger than birds or small animals for miles, so he walked on the road, preferring it over trudging over the rough rocks of the slowly forming mountains far up ahead.

It was during one of his many walking breaks that his nostrils were met with a heavenly aroma, setting off those accursed saliva glands.

As quietly as possible, Zuko made his way towards the smell. Low to the ground, he peered over the side of the road to the small valley below. The source made his stomach rumble. Sitting over a small fire lay a slab of meat; what kind, Zuko didn't know, nor did he care. It smelled of fresh herbs and delicious spices; juices from the tender meat dripping below, only to be licked up by the fire. It felt so long since the prince had had a proper meal, he just couldn't help himself.

He prepared himself to pounce, but was cut short as a man returned to the camp, kneeling down by a tree. Shifting slightly, Zuko saw a woman, most likely his wife, sitting on the ground. The man reached out and placed a hand on her large belly, rubbing gently, a proud smile on his face.

_She's pregnant_, the young dragon realized.

_Aren't you the noble one? _That irritating voice in the back of his head mocked. It seemed to be talking a lot more lately. _You get a little hungry, so you're gonna steal from a happy couple and their baby on the way._

_ Shut-up._ As silently as he came, Zuko backed away then, once on the opposite side of the road, decided his break was over and leaped into the air, leaving the pair gaping at the large red creature flying off in the distance.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Later that day, Zuko was met with a wonderful sight: A small town sat a few miles off in the distance in front of the nearing mountain range. Even from this far, the prince could see large fields full of luscious crops and, better yet, pastures filled with various animals. Stealing still didn't sit right with him, especially after the incident earlier that morning, but neither would he allow himself to starve out in the middle of nowhere. He hadn't come all this way just to give up on finding his uncle.

With that thought in mind, Zuko continued in his flight, slowing once he reached the outskirts of the town.

As the teen glided over the small buildings, close to the rooftops, but not enough to crash into anything, he spotted something that irked him, though he couldn't figure out why. Standing across from what looked like a vendor of some sorts, stood a group of Earth Kingdom soldiers; one of them, quite literally with egg on his face. The one in the middle, seemingly the leader, held a small boy of about eight or nine by the collar of his tunic and shook him roughly, yelling something, though Zuko couldn't make out the words.

When the man pulled back a fist to strike the child, the prince snapped. He pulled in his wings and dropped to ground a few yards away from them and let out a roar much like he had when he was fleeing his home. Zuko shook that particular memory from his mind as he watch the surprised faces of the group before him as they felt the heat coming from deep within his belly as it warmed the air around them.

Their expressions soon turned to one of sheer terror as they finally came out of their shock and saw exactly what it was that had interrupted them. Eyes wide, the men took off in the other direction, dropping the boy ungracefully in the dirt, apparently to be eaten by the monster.

Zuko took a few steps toward him, only slightly hurt as he backed away; the soldiers expressions mirrored on the child's face. Lowering his head, the teen nudged the small foot sitting in front of him and tilted his head to the side, hoping to show he didn't want to hurt him. He couldn't for the life of him think of the reason he saved this boy. Maybe he reminded him a bit of himself when he was that age. Whatever the reason, something inside the prince told him he needed this boy to trust him.

Slowly, if a bit shaky, the child reached out a hand and touched the large snout near his feet. He smiled as the creature leaned into the touch, humming quietly; the smile revealing several missing teeth in the young boy's mouth.

"Where'd you come from?" He whispered, awe evident in his voice. He was about to say more, but was cut off by a loud rumble coming from the big red thing.

Slightly embarrassed, Zuko lifted his head a took a step back.

The boy laughed and, standing up, asked, "Are you hungry?" Seeing a small nod from the creature and excited it seemed to understand him, he continued. "I'll take you to my house and get you some food. It's the least I can do for you saving me from those guys. Come on, I owe you." He beamed as he started walking off, not taking "no" for an answer.

Zuko reluctantly followed, a nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach saying something was about to happen. Whether bad or good, he couldn't tell, and he didn't want to think about it too much to begin with. So as his stomach let out another growl, he decided whatever will happened will happen; as long as he got some food in his stomach, he really didn't care anymore.

~~~ oOo ~~~

As they neared the boy's house, they were met with a cacophony of noise as the various animals alerted their masters that something big, scary, and dangerous was nearing their home. There were cow-pigs, sheep-pigs, and even a small rooster-pig perched on the fence near the barn. All were loud, and all look extremely appetizing to the dragon. He could imagine their taste; the sweet smell of their blood, and the wonderful quiet as the annoyingly loud creatures were silenced forever. Zuko was forced to quickly push aside those thoughts, lest he actually act on them. _Not a good way to gain this boy's trust_, he thought. Though he still couldn't figure out why he needed to get it in the first place.

"No one can ever sneak up on us," said boy announced happily.

Zuko snorted. _No kidding._

"Lee?" A man said, making his way over to them from the house, a mixture of surprise and fear evident on his face.

"This thing just saved me from the soldiers! By the end, it had them running away with their tails between their legs!" Lee exclaimed excitedly.

A woman walked up to joined them, wiping her hands on a cloth. "What is this...thing?" She asked tentatively.

"I don't really know, it just-"

Lee was cut off by another voice; one that made Zuko feel dizzy. It couldn't be...could it?

"...Nephew?"

Zuko barely had time to think as arms suddenly wrapped themselves around his long face. He could feel the man's warmth; smell his familiar sent of tea and incense; and feel the warm liquid that ran from his eyes onto his nephew's scales as he pressed closer to the one who felt so much like his actual son.

_Uncle_, the teen choked out, tears threatening to spill from his own eyes. It still surprised him that dragons even _could_ cry.

At that, Iroh pulled away from the dragon, though still held on to him. "I was afraid I had lost you," he whispered. "I did not know what to do. I could no longer stay where we were at, so I began to travel; trusting the Spirits would bring us together again...and they have." He smiled warmly as he spoke these last words.

Zuko couldn't take it anymore. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried his best to ignore the tears streaming down his face, the soft thump as they hit the ground beneath him, and the gaze of the three people staring wide-eyed at him behind his uncle.

Quietly, he said, _He ordered them to kill me_. He heard the small gasp come from Iroh, but pressed on. Opening up a wing for Uncle to see the many holes in it, the prince told him, _It was Azula's idea; to use my skin as decoration for the palace...and father liked it. _Zuko let out a sad laugh as he opened his eyes. _He wanted to mount my head on the wall in his throne room. That way _he _would be the one with the glory of conquering the last dragon. Though I'm sure he'd leave out the fact that that dragon was his own _son_._ He choked back a sob as he asked,_ What am I supposed to do now, __Uncle? What am I supposed to live for now that...now that I have nothing to live for?_

Iroh hated seeing his nephew so discouraged. Zuko was a fighter, and seeing that he had basically given up broke his heart.

Turning toward the still confused family, Iroh asked, "Will you please excuse us for a moment? I promise you, I will explain what is going on, but please, I need to talk with-"

_Li_, Zuko offered his alias.

"-Li privately," Iroh finished, not missing a beat.

"...Of course, Mushi," the man said a bit hesitantly, turning his wife and son toward the house.

"Thank you, Gansu, Sela."

The general chuckled as he overheard Lee telling his parents, "Hey, we have the same name! Cool!"

He then turned back to his nephew and motioned for the teen to follow him to the barn. There was just enough room for Zuko to curl up against the back wall and Iroh to sit comfortably across from him.

"Now, tell me, nephew, what has happened since we parted ways?"

Zuko told him everything; his escape from his home; being rescued by the healer, Song; traveling day after day with no food; even how disgusted he was at finding how delicious raw meat tasted. Eventually, he caught up to the present, and with a tired sigh, laid his head down on his front feet.

Iroh took in the entire story in silence. He said nothing a moment longer after Zuko finished, as if contemplating his reply, before saying, "You have been through much, my nephew". He was careful not to use his real name or title. "However. The Spirits have kept you alive for a reason. It was no mere coincidence that young woman found you, nor was it that we both found this village; this family.

"Just because the world looks bleak, does not mean there is nothing to live for. It just means you must fight that much harder to find a _new_ path to follow; a new reason to live. You are a fighter; you always have been. I know things do not always come easy for you, but you have never given up. Why start now just because things have not worked out as you had hoped?"

Zuko remained silent, but Iroh could tell he was listening. Quietly, the general added, "I have always known you were capable of great things, nephew, but even the Spirits have seen the potential in you. Though you have your flaws, you are a kindhearted person; you do not wish ill upon anyone. This war...has hurt many people; on both sides. This family is only a few of them." At Zuko's questioning gaze, he clarified. "Their oldest son was drafted into the army," Iroh stated sadly.

_What are you getting at, Uncle?_ Zuko asked. _How is someone like _me_ gonna be able to do anything to help? I can't even make my own father love me; how am I supposed to end these people's suffering?_

"Love is not something you earn, my nephew," Iroh sighed. "The only way to end their suffering is for this war to end. You cannot do it alone; but with help, I know you can end this war, return to your original form, and reunite this family with their son."

_'Help' meaning the Avatar,_ Zuko stated. _You're saying I should join him._

"That is correct."

_But Uncle, I can't just...betray my nation like that. I mean, Father may see me as a traitor, but I'm...I'm _not_. I'm not a traitor._

Iroh smiled, placing a hand upon his nephew's head. "The world is not black and white, nephew. The definition of a traitor may be different to the one doing the betraying. Many may see him as such, only because they do not see the end result; or his reasons behind his actions. While they claim he has turned his back on his country, in reality, he is saving it from its own destruction."

_...I don't know,_ Zuko said uneasily. _How could they even accept me after all I've done?_

Gently patting where his hand rest on the teen's head, Iroh replied, "Just be yourself. Show them the real you. You will do fine. Now, you should get some rest. You look tired."

_I am tired._

"Then sleep. We will talk more when you have replenished your strength." The general stood up, knees popping, and headed towards the doorway.

_Thanks, Uncle_, the prince said quietly as he drifted off.

Smiling brightly as he headed towards the house, Iroh tried to rack his brain for the interrogation to come.

* * *

A/N: Well, I was intending on having this be the last flashback chapter, but things didn't work out that way. xP I am so please, though, with out this turned out. I actually cried while writing the scene with Zuko and Iroh being reunited. I get too attached to characters. D: And I love Iroh's little speech to Zuko. He's one of those characters that just kinda flows (which is why I love him...that and he's the coolest old guy ever).

But enough from me. Let me know what you think! :D

Do I really even need to say anymore that I own nothing? It's kinda obvious already...sadly.


	10. Chapter 9

A/N: *peeks in* Heheh. I'm a bit late, aren't I? I'll just leave this longer chapter here with you, while I dodge the incoming rotten fruit that's being thrown at my head. xP

Chapter 9

Upon entering the small house, Iroh was met with three sets of gazes; two suspicious, one excited. Sighing, he made his way over to the table situated in the middle of the room and sat down next to Lee, across from Gansu and Sela.

"I promised I would explain," Iroh started, "and I will do my best to answer your questions, though some things are not my place to say."

Gansu nodded, understanding. "Then, first I want to know what that thing is and where it came from."

Sadly, the general answered, "He is a dragon...and he is my nephew". He received strange looks at this, but he continued regardless. "As for where he is from, he -_we_- come from a village far West of here."

"What do you mean, he's your nephew?" Sela asked, confusion evident in her voice.

Remembering to use Zuko's alias, Iroh told them, "Li used to be as human as you and I, but unfortunately, his desire to please is father angered the Spirits. They sent their wrath down upon him, and as a result, he was given the form you now see."

Lee broke the silence then. "Why would they get mad at him for that? I thought pleasing your dad was a _good_ thing."

Iroh smiled at the pure innocence radiating off of the boy. _Zuko used to be just like him. Back when things were much simpler. _"In order to understand Li's situation, you must know that he is a complicated person, with an even more complicated past."

"What do you mean?" Gansu asked, barely hiding the suspicion creeping into his tone.

The old man sighed. "Li's father, my younger brother, is not a good man. When our father passed away, my brother gained his position; I was overlooked because I had lost my son in the war. After my sister-in-law...left five years ago, he became extremely cold, especially to Li. I've no doubt he was abused, though no one has ever confirmed it. Still, my nephew yearned to please him; to do whatever he could to just get his attention. Then one day, Li blew it."

"How'd he blow it?" Lee asked. It was obvious he had never even considered the fact that there were parents out there who didn't care for or look after their children.

"He spoke when he was not supposed to," Iroh replied, regret written all over his face. "I allowed him to join me in a very important meeting, and Li spoke out against a plan to try to overthrow our neighboring village." A pause. He had to choose his words carefully. "As a result, my nephew was injured and then banished because he begged for mercy, which my brother saw as a sign of weakness."

Sela gasped and whispered a quiet, "How horrible".

Gansu spoke up then. "That still doesn't answer the question of how he ended up like that. Exactly what did he do to anger the Spirits?"

"He was given a task by his father; in order to come home, he had to complete it successfully. For three years he has worked hard, but I am afraid that it was all for nothing. In order to return to his original form, my nephew must correct the mistakes he has made and bring balance back to our village, and the villages North, East, and South of us as well." Iroh glanced over at Lee. The boy's eyes were wide, and his mouth hung agape.

"Wow," he breathed. "He must be like..._really_ important then!"

The general chuckled. "He is to me. But I suppose the Spirits think so as well."

"What was his task?" Gansu asked.

Iroh tensed, though not visibly, and replied, "That, I am afraid, I am not at liberty to say".

A long silence followed, in which the farmer looked to his wife and son, who both gave a smile and a nod. "All right," he said at last. "Even though you've only been with us for a week, we trust you, Mushi. You're a good man, and you've given us no reason not to believe you. You and your nephew can stay here as long as you like."

A smile broke out across the old general's face as he bowed deeply. "Thank you very much for your generosity. We are in your debt."

Gansu returned the bow, but then a thought occurred to him. "Uh, about food though..."

Laughing, Iroh answered, "Do not worry, my nephew can hunt up in the mountains for his meals. I am sure there are plenty of mountain goat-llamas to feed on up there."

"Eww, he eats 'em raw?" Lee blanched.

"He is still not too fond of the thought of it either," chuckled the old general.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Lee couldn't hold himself back anymore. All day he had been curious about Mushi's nephew, and all day his parents told him to stay away, lest he wake the sleeping dragon. Even when he finally got up to go get some food, Lee was kept away from him. Especially after Mushi explained that Li was an emotional person with a bit of a short fuse. This made them slightly worried, but the old man assured them that his nephew was a good person.

He also had explained that Li _could_ talk, but only people with a connection to the Spirit World could hear him, which brought up more questions about how Mushi could communicate with him.

The man's tale had been interesting to say the least, but Lee's curiosity kept pulling him toward the barn where, every now an then, he would catch a glimpse of the red dragon fast asleep in the straw. He was never allowed to go near him, as Mushi had told them Li was a bit jumpy from the years spent working on his task, but now everyone else was asleep themselves and the boy knew it was the perfect time for a little exploring.

As quietly as possible, Lee made his way over to the barn. Peeking his head around the large entryway, he saw what he was looking for (though it was pretty hard to miss, the idea of searching for his prize on his grand adventure appealed to the young boy). The dragon lay curled up against the back wall, wings tucked in, head on its paws, and tail wrapped around its long body. He could see the patch of hair at the end of Li's tail move back and forth as he breathed.

Lee couldn't even begin to fathom why Mushi's nephew would even _want_ to go back to being a human. Other than benders (which as far as Lee knew, he wasn't blessed with that gift), humans were boring. Why any normal person wouldn't want to be a powerful creature that struck fear into those lousy excuses for soldiers was beyond him.

Being able to fly was pretty cool too.

Inching forward on his tip toes, Lee crept up beside the dragon, taking in every detail.

That's when he noticed the saddle resting on Li's back. Glancing towards the teen's face, then over his shoulder at the doorway, he quietly reached into the saddle bags, searching for something, _anything_ cool enough to take to his friends to show. His hand bumped into something long and slender and he gently lifted the item out of the bag to reveal a dagger. Lee's eyes widened at the expensive looking weapon. It was clearly made with a lot of talent and care. The design was simple, yet gorgeous.

Sliding the blade out a few inches, an idea struck him. He put the blade back in the sheath and quietly made his way out of the barn.

Lee didn't turn around to see a large eye open up and watch him leave.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Zuko quietly made his way to the sunflower field out past the Earth Kingdom family's house. Normally he would be upset that this peasant boy robbed him (of his treasured dagger, no less) but strangely, instead of anger, he felt amusement. He still didn't understand why he hadn't made any sort of movement to stop the child from taking his most precious belonging. Not even his own family was allowed to even look at it, other than Uncle, so why was Lee any different?

The prince still had no answer to this as he arrived at his destination. Staying low to the ground, hidden by the tall flowers, Zuko watched as the young boy swung the dagger from side to side before thrusting it forward with a, "hiya!". He then took a step back, clutching his chest and moaning as if in pain and fell back into the bed of sunflowers, apparently defeated by his invisible foe.

Feeling a sudden burst of nostalgia, Zuko remembered doing the exact same thing with the dagger when he was around Lee's age. He also remembered his sister's cruel words after his own imaginary enemy beat him.

_"You waste your time playing with knives," an eight year old Azula sneered. "You're not even any good."_

_ Temper flaring, Zuko blushed a bright red. Fist held in front of him, he retorted, "put an apple on your head, and we'll find out how good I am."_

_ Ignoring her brother's statement, Azula hopped out of her chair and said, "by the way, Uncle's coming home"._

_ "Does that mean...we won the war?" Zuko asked as she stopped in front of him._

_ "No. It means Uncle's a quitter _and_ a loser." She walked off toward a large column that decorated the interior of the room they were in._

_ "What are you talking about? Uncle's _not_ a quitter."_

_ Trailing her hand along the column as she spun around it, Azula replied, "oh yes he is. He found out his son died, and he just fell apart. A _real_ general would stay and burn Ba Sing Se to the ground. Not lose the battle and come home _crying_." She said this last part with a smirk sent towards her brother._

_ "How do you know what he should do?" Zuko asked. Then in a quieter tone, "he's probably just sad his only kid is gone...forever." _

_ Their oncoming argument was cut short when their mother, Princess Ursa appeared in the doorway, announcing that Ozai had requested an audience with Firelord Azulon, Zuko and Azula's grandfather. As Zuko left the room to change into his best clothes, he heard his little sister ask why they even bothered calling the man "Firelord", since he wasn't the strong ruler he used to be and someone would probably take his place soon. The young prince didn't stick around to hear his mother's reply, though he was quite positive Azula would get in trouble, and this made Zuko smile. _

_ He was thankful he had his mother to stick up for him and punish Azula. He shuddered at the thought of what life would be like if something ever happened to her. Though only a tender age of ten, Zuko was no fool. He knew his father was disappointed because he was so weak. All his life, Prince Ozai had told him that his sister was born lucky, while he was lucky to be born. Once Zuko had asked Ursa what that meant, but she merely told him not to believe that statement; that he was the luckiest boy on Earth. He had family that loved him, was born into power, didn't want for anything, and lived in the strongest country in the world._

Zuko hadn't realized at the time how easily all that could be taken away. That night was one of the worst nights of his life. Granted, the young man had had many horrible days in his short life, but this one was up on the top of his list of "Worst Days in Prince Zuko's Life". Princess Ursa had disappeared that night, never to be heard from since. He remembered Azula saying something about Father planning on killing him, and his chant of, "Azula always lies", then everything after that was a blur.

The teen was brought out of his depressing revery when a squeak and thump sounded in the field in front of him. Shaking his head to clear the remnants of lingering memories, Zuko lifted his head to see the embarrassed, if not slightly fearful gaze of Lee. Apparently the boy had been so startled by the dragon's presence, he had tripped over his own feet, yelping on the way down.

Cover blown, Zuko stood up and walked over to the child still sitting on the ground. Lee bashfully got to his feet and, sheathing the dagger, offered it back to its owner. If the teen's mouth was capable of smirking, he would have done so. Lee looked like a child caught stealing fruit tarts before dinner, waiting to be reprimanded by his angry mother.

The boy flinched as the dragon extended a large foot toward him. He let out a sigh of relief as the massive paw stopped short and, instead of striking him, moved to the ground in front of his feet where a sharp claw began to scratch characters into the dirt.

"...Movements must flow?" Lee asked, repeating the dragon's words with a bit of difficulty as he arched his neck to read it.

Zuko nodded.

"You mean the whole, 'make the blade a part of yourself' thing?"

Shaking his head, the prince stamped his paw over his words, effectively erasing them, then wrote, "not part of you, extension of you".

Lee's eyes seemed to brighten as he finally understood the older boy's meaning. "Oh, I see!"

Again, Zuko wished he could smile. All that time refusing to smile, and now when he really wanted to, he wasn't able to do much more with his mouth than eat, roar, and spit massive amounts of fire. _The spirits just love karma, don't they?_ Using his snout, he pushed the dagger back toward the boy.

"...I can try it?" Lee asked, hoping he was getting the right message from the mute dragon.

Another nod.

A huge smile spread across the Earth Kingdom boy's face as he excitedly headed back to his original spot and began his imaginary battle once more. Zuko had to admit, his movements had improved a great deal just from that little bit of advice. If he kept practicing and found a master to learn from, the prince had no doubt the boy would make an excellent swordsman someday.

Lee looked to the teen and beamed when Zuko gave a nod of approval. Ecstatic, he slashed the blade through the air a few more times before returning to the dragon's side, apparently ready to call it a night. After placing the dagger carefully into its place in the saddle, the two headed back to the house.

"Ya know," Lee started, rounding to Zuko's front, careful to stay a distance ahead as to not be stepped on. "I think you'd really like my big brother, Sensu. He used to teach me stuff like this all the time."

_Then I pray for your sake, this war ends soon so he doesn't end up like my big brother_, Zuko thought sadly, thinking of his cousin, Lu Ten.

~~~ oOo ~~~

The next morning couldn't come soon enough. For the rest of the night, Zuko had tossed and turned, his uncle's words and his time spent with Lee mulling over relentlessly in his mind. The moment he heard the front door to the house open up, the prince immediately made his way out of the barn. He was disappointed to see that it wasn't Iroh, but the farmer, heading off to begin his daily chores. The man jumped slightly at the sight of the large red dragon closing in on him, but relaxed when Li settled down in the open space between the buildings.

Coughing, Gansu asked, "are you...waiting for Mushi?"

Remembering his uncle's alias, Zuko nodded.

The farmer went inside for a moment, then returned just as quickly. "He's coming."

The teen dipped his head and let a low rumble escape his throat, hoping Gansu would take it as a "thank you" and not a threat.

The man seemed to catch on, despite Zuko's slight fears, and returned the bow before heading off to his pastures.

Iroh appeared moments later, apparently taking the time to fix himself up a bit and grab a small loaf of bread before exiting the house. "You called, nephew?" the old general asked, walking up to the dragon.

_Uncle_, Zuko started. He still wasn't sure how to say what was on his mind, let alone whether he was making the right decision or not, but he tried nonetheless. _I've...thought about what you said and...well, I guess what I'm trying to say is, I'll...I'll _try_ helping the Avatar,_ he said awkwardly, not making eye contact. _But I...I need you there to help me. I doubt they would just let me join -even if I _was_ in my normal body- so I'm gonna need you to help me explain myself, and..._ He deflated, knowing he was simply rambling now. Glancing at his uncle, the prince saw the exact reason he hadn't been looking the retired general in the eyes.

The man was beaming with a smile from ear to ear. "Oh, nephew! I am so proud of you! I knew you would make the right choice." After a quick hug, Iroh asked him, "when do you wish to leave, my nephew?"

_If we're going to catch up to them, we need to head out immediately_, Zuko answered without hesitation. _You know how fast the Avatar moves._

Iroh seemed to stop and think this over for a moment, then replied, "very well. I will inform Gansu and Sela that we will be leaving". With that, the man headed back into the house.

He returned several minutes later with a pack slung over his shoulder and a sad-looking Lee trailing behind him. Sela followed shortly after, holding a small package in her hand. Noticing something going on, Gansu approached to stand by his family.

"Here, this ought to get you through a few meals," the woman said, handing the box to Iroh, who thanked her.

"Do you really have to go?" Lee asked sadly.

The old man ruffled his hair and answered, "I am afraid so, Lee. My nephew and I must go seek out help if he is ever to return to normal again, and unfortunately for us, this help does not like to stay in one place for long". The boy simply nodded and back up toward his parents, his mother placing an arm around his small shoulders.

After goodbyes were made, Iroh quickly made his way into Zuko's saddle, securing his pack to the back. As the old general fastened the straps around his legs, the prince heard what sounded like thunder and spotted a dust cloud speeding their way. The source soon revealed itself to be the soldiers from the day before, all on ostrich-horses.

The farmer stepped forward. "What do you think they want?"

_Trouble, _Zuko answered. Iroh nodded his head in agreement, repeating his nephew's statement for the others to hear.

Within minutes, the group pulled to a stop in front of the small family, sending wary glances to the beast beside them.

"What do you want, Gow?" Gansu asked, allowing as much venom in his voice as possible.

Sneering, the man answered, "Just thought someone ought to tell you, you're son's battalion got captured".

Sela released a gasp as her grip on her other son tightened.

Looking at the soldier to his right, Gow asked, "you boys hear what the Fire Nation _did_ with their last group of Earth Kingdom prisoners?"

"Dressed 'em up in Fire Nation uniforms and put them on the front lines. Unarmed, way I heard it," the man answered, clearly finding humor in this. He then snorted and spit off to his side, keeping a wicked smile on his face the whole time. "Then they just watched."

That did it. Pointing a finger at the solider, Gansu growled out, "you watch your mouth!"

Gow frowned at the farmer and spurred his ostrich-horse forward at the man back-talking him.

Before he could even get close to him however, a large red face showing dangerous looking fangs blocked his path. The creature growled at the soldiers, daring the men to even _think_ about messing with the family behind him. Panicked, the beasts of burden took several steps back, sensing the blood lust in the frightening predator before them.

"Why bother rooting around in the mud with these pigs?" Gow asked, trying to mask the fear on his face with hatred. With that, the group of men turned and fled back to town, leaving a trail of dust in their wake.

As Gansu comforted Sela in her grief, a shocked Lee asked, "what's gonna happen to my brother?"

Pulling away from his wife's embrace, the farmer stated, "I'm going to the front. I'm going to find Sensu, and bring him back". The woman began to cry as her husband escorted her to their house.

Lee ran up to Zuko and Iroh, pain written all over his young face. "...When my dad goes, will you stay?" The boy's voice quivered as if he were on the verge of tears.

After a short pause, Zuko answered, _no. We need to move on_. A teary-eyed Iroh relayed the message, only more gently than his nephew had said it.

Lee watched as Mushi looked at his nephew, eyes widening at something the teen said, then whispered, "Are you sure, nephew?" Li nodded. "Very well." With that, the old man reached into the saddlebags and pulled out a very familiar dagger. The boy was shocked when he extended it out for him to take. "Here. He wants you to have this. Li would like you to read the inscription."

Lee's eyes brightened as he took the knife and pulled the blade out. "...Made in Earth Kingdom..."

Iroh chuckled. "The other one."

"Never give up without a fight."

Zuko seemed to take that as his cue as he moved forward, away from the boy, then launched himself into the air, leaving a surprised Lee and a squealing deer-pig behind.

~~~ oOo ~~~

Iroh and Zuko decided to stop and rest up a bit more along the side of the road before they headed off. The general, of course, was off gathering leaves for tea while the prince relaxed in the grass by the stream.

Caught up in memories of the night his mother disappeared, Zuko mumbled a quiet, _Azula always lies... _So distracted was he, that he almost didn't notice the cart quickly racing up the road toward him.

Glancing up, he saw it was Sela. "You have to help!" She yelled as she pulled the reigns to halt the pair of ostrich-horses. He noticed the one Uncle had received from Song was amongst the pair. Jumping out of the cart, she continued. "It's Lee. The thugs from town came back as soon as Gansu left. When they ordered us to give them food, Lee pulled a knife on them. I don't even know where he _got_ a knife!" A pause. "Then they...took him away. They said if he's old enough to fight, he's old enough to join the army. I know we barely know you, but..." She trailed off as she was overcome by sobs.

Zuko quickly stood up, startling the bawling woman. _I'll get your son back._ Without waiting for her reply (nor for Iroh to return) he took to the skies, headed towards town.

~~~ oOo ~~~

The sun was already beginning to set as Zuko walked into town. He was originally planning on just flying in and grabbing the boy, but without knowing the situation first, he couldn't be sure that they would not hurt Lee if he startled them like that.

Said boy noticed the large figure of his friend immediately. Jerking his head up, he hollered, "Hey! There he is! I _told_ you he'd come!"

At that, all the soldiers stood and stepped forward, spears in hand. Gow stepped out of the shadows of a building as Zuko finally stopped, his scales glistening in the sunlight, shining red rays of light upon the surrounding area. The prince growled, showing his teeth, as he said, _Let the kid go._

The Earth Kingdom captain laughed, then just as quickly as it came, his humor left. "Who do you think you are, baring your fangs at us? Oh, that boy told us _what_ you are. You're nothing but a kid who's been cursed by the Spirits. I'm sure the Earth King would pay a hefty price for a prize like you."

Memories of his last trip home flooded the prince's mind, causing his anger to escalate. Head lowered, he growled louder, wishing he could give these men a peace of his mind. Thankfully, a voice spoke up, granting him that wish.

"Nephew, what are you doing?"

_Tell them what I say, Uncle._

"What?"

_Just do it._

Clearing his throat, Iroh spoke to the soldiers. "My nephew has asked me to relay his comments to you." At the questioning gazes, the general once again had to give his explanation.

"Fine then," Gow replied skeptically. "What's he saying?"

"...He says, who he is does not matter...but he knows who you are...He says you are not soldiers, you are bullies...freeloaders, abusing your power...mostly over women and children...He also says you do not want Lee in your army...and that you are sick cowards, messing with a family who has already lost one son to the war..." Iroh _really_ hoped his nephew had a plan, and wasn't just saying all of these things to make the men angry.

Seeing the oncoming fight, Iroh stepped away from the prince and made his way over towards the buildings. He knew Zuko did not want him interfering, so the general respected his decision. Although, if things got out of hand, he _would_ protect his nephew. Even if the boy would be angry at him later.

Looking to one of his fellow soldiers, Gow asked, "are you just gonna stand there and let these _strangers _stand there and insult you like this?"

Taking a hint, the man readied his spear and charged. However, Zuko was ready for him. Using his front legs to propel him, he quickly spun and sent his tail smashing into the man's gut, sending him skidding down the dirt road. Giving up, the man crawled away on his hands and knees.

Another soldier watched as his friend ran away and, shaking his head to prepare himself, charged at the dragon as well. Backing up slightly as the man neared, Zuko reared up on his hind legs, grabbed the man's head in his left paw, and knocked him over backwards as the prince came back down on his right foreleg. He made sure he put no pressure on his left as he landed, lest he smash the man's skull. Convinced he got his point across, Zuko released the soldier, allowing him to to follow the man before him out of sight.

The teen barely had time to recover as a third soldier came at him. Getting irritated, Zuko reached out with his massive jaws and in one swift movement, snapped the man's spear in half. Disarmed, he threw down the remaining half of the spear and fled past Lee, who gave an excited cheer.

The last man standing, Gow pulled out two hammers and prepared himself for a fight. Zuko crouched low, fangs bared and claws digging into the Earth below. With a grunt, Gow slammed a hammer into the ground, causing Earth to rise, waiting to be hit by the other weapon. Once the hammer made impact, it flew at the young dragon. Zuko caught the rock in his teeth and bit hard, crushing it into pieces. The dust cleared away to reveal a menacing scowl on the teen's face.

Jumping up, the Earth Kingdom captain spun, then brought both hammers down to raise multiple stones at once, which he quickly sent Zuko's way. The prince managed to destroy the first within his jaws, and the second with a swipe of his paw, but the third smashed into his chest, knocking the air out of him. Quickly recovering, Zuko straightened a readied himself for the next onslaught of attacks. Without warning, he lunged for the captain.

Somewhere off in the distance, he heard an old man yelling, "give 'em a left! A left!"

An equally elderly woman pointed out, "it's not a fist fight".

"He's gotta left foot, don't he?"

All other conversations were lost to him as Gow sent several rocks flying toward him. Zuko blocked as many as he could until one finally it its mark. Twisted slightly from a rather wide swipe of his paw, a rock crashed into his still healing arrow wound on his leg, causing him to lose his balance. Rolling, the prince jumped to his feet, ignoring the searing pain shooting throw his leg.

Gow smirked as he saw his opening.

Zuko heard several shouts of, "look out!" "behind you!" and "nephew!" along with many others. He turned just in time to see the captain sending boulder-sized rocks his way. The prince tried his best to block them, but Gow was relentless in his attacks. The boulders getting bigger, Zuko knew he wouldn't be able to hold him off forever. The man pounded a hammer into the ground with all his might, sending a wave of Earth hurtling toward the dragon. Still disoriented from the last boulder, the wave slammed into the prince, hitting him in his soft underbelly. Air rushed out of his lungs as he flew backwards, skidding on his side until his head finally landed on the ground with a loud crash.

As he clenched his eyes shut, those accursed memories came back.

_A hand grabbed his shoulder and shook it lightly. Groggily, the young prince looked up. Seeing who it was, he asked, "mom?"_

_ Ursa sat the half-asleep boy up as she told him, "Zuko, my love, please listen to me. Everything __I've done, I've done to protect you." She gave her only son a tight hug. Pulling away, she continued. "Remember this, Zuko. No matter how things may seem to change, never forget who you are."_

_ Releasing her child, Ursa backed away, pulling a hood over her long raven-colored hair._

Gow moved forward, ready to get a better view of his victim. He could hear that little brat utter a quiet, "get up," but he knew that wasn't going to happen. He would make sure of it. The captain raised his hammers, ready to deal the finishing blow, when those large golden eyes snapped open. Claws digging into the dirt, the dragon swiftly stood, a jet of fire accompanied by a loud roar streaming out of its mouth as it rounded on the man. The force of the blast sent him flying backwards.

The dragon looked like some sort of malicious spirit as it slowly stood its full height, surrounded by golden flames.

Lee stared in shock. Surely that fire hadn't come from Li. That would mean he was a Firebender... Suddenly it all made sense. Why else would the Spirits turn him into the national animal of the Fire Nation if he wasn't Fire Nation himself?

Gow quickly got back to his feet, preparing himself once more, but the many blasts of fire the teen threw at him forced him to go on the defensive. He brought up a wall to protect himself as another fireball was sent his way. Unfortunately, it was too strong, blasting right through his last line of defense and sending him flying, only to smash into a building.

Smoke rolled out of the creature's mouth as Gow looked up in terror. "Who...who are you?"

The dragon looked over at the man that claimed to be his uncle, who quickly ran over to translate. The old man sighed, then stated with more authority than the man's appearance suggested he held, stated, "His name is Zuko. Son of Ursa and Firelord Ozai. Prince of the Fire Nation, and heir to the throne".

A long silence ensued where only the murmurs of the townspeople could be heard. It was broken rather abruptly as the elderly man from before hollered out, "liar! I heard of you. You're not a prince, you're an outcast. His own father burned and disowned him!"

Iroh looked at Zuko. He could tell that had been a low blow to the boy. As his nephew moved towards Gow, grabbing the dagger from the man's pocket in his claws, the general sent the old man a death glare. Zuko had enough hardship in his life without dealing with it from complete strangers that he helped out of the kindness of his heart. After he was satisfied that the man was now officially terrified of him, Iroh moved his gaze back to his nephew.

He was walking toward Lee and Sela, limping as he was carrying the dagger in his right paw. Walking on it would only make it hurt worse anyway. As Zuko neared the pair, Sela moved in front of her now freed son, saying, "not a step closer".

Kneeling in front of them, Zuko place the knife on the ground, inching it forward with his snout. _It's yours. You should have it._

Seeing what Li was trying to say, the boy mustered up all the courage he could to tell the teen, "no! I hate you!" Then he and his mother left without another word, leaving a stunned dragon behind.

Silently, Zuko picked up his dagger and made his way over to his uncle. He felt as if he had just been slapped in the face. None of the bruises he received from Gow measured up to the pain of that small boy's verbal blow.

"...Zuko," Iroh started tentatively. "Are you all right?"

_Let's just go, Uncle. The sooner we leave, the better chance we have of catching the Avatar._

The retired general felt a bit of panic over this until Zuko continued.

_Maybe...maybe if we end this war...I could someday make it up to him..._

A sad smile graced Iroh's features as he climbed into the saddle. "I am sure that once the world is in balance again, they would be honored to meet the real you, Prince Zuko."

The prince didn't respond as he leaped into the air, praying they would find the Avatar soon. He didn't know how much longer he could take being a dragon. _Please, Agni. Help us find him._

A/N: At last! The flashbacks are now officially over, and we can get back to the GAang. :D As for this chapter, a lot of cannon stuff happened. I of course twisted it all to fit my own story. Also, about Lee taking the dagger instead of the Dao Swords, well, before you ask about that, I will remind you that Zuko never went to that town and watched the man force Iroh to dance, so he never got angry at him, and he never stole his swords. So, Lee had to take the next best thing. ;D

Oh! And please review. Reviews really make me want to write more and faster, and since I didn't get a lot of reviews with the last chapter, I was feeling kinda sad, and it made me not want to write. ): So, more reviews get faster updates, because they boost my self-confidence in my writing. xP

**I own nothing!**


	11. Author's Note

To all my faithful readers, I am so sorry for the long wait of Chapter 10. I absolutely hate it when I have to wait months on an update to a story, only to be disappointed by an author's note, and I hate that I have become one of those writers. However, due to computer problems (mainly, my speakers have kicked the bucket) and the fact that I don't have Avatar Book 2 on DVD, I have been unable to watch episodes of A:tLA to keep it cannon, and therefore have been unable to work on Balance.

I do not, however, intend to give up on this story. So I am leaving it up to you to decide how I write this story.

One: Wait until I either get new speakers or a new computer, so the story stays as cannon as possible (action, dialogue, etc.).

Two: I can _try_ to go from my memory of the show (though it's been a while since I watched Book 2) but I can't guarantee the cannon…ness of it. Updates will be faster (hopefully) but things will most likely be changed by my terrible memory.

So let me know what you want me to do with a review. And fear not, this story is **not** on hiatus.

Also, in the meantime, I have started working on an Avatar: The Last Airbender and Teen Titans crossover story. It's a Zuko/Slade apprentice story...kinda. No slash. Let me know if you want me to upload it as well.

GhostMajor


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